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CORRESPONDENCE    OF   WILLIAM   SHIRLEY 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

NEW  YORK    .    BOSTON  •    CHICAGO 
DALLAS   •    SAN    FRANCISCO 

MACMILLAN   &   CO.,  Limited 

LONDON  •    BOMBAY  •    CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 

THE  MACMILLAN  CO.  OF  CANADA,  Ltd. 

TORONTO 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2011  with  funding  from 

University  of  North  Carolina  at  Chapel  Hill 


http://www.archive.org/details/correspondenceof01shir 


CORRESPONDENCE    OF 
WILLIAM    SHIRLEY 

GOVERNOR    OF    MASSACHUSETTS 

AND 

MILITARY   COMMANDER  IN  AMERICA 
1731-1760 


EDITED    UNDER    THE    AUSPICES    OF 
THE    NATIONAL    SOCIETY    OF    THE    COLONIAL    DAMES    OF    AMERICA 

BY 
CHARLES  HENRY  LINCOLN,  Ph.D. 


TWO   VOLUMES  V,  / 


Vol.  I 


^    fccJ 
C 

THE   MACMILLAN   COMPANY 

1912 

All  rights  reserved 


Copyright,  1912, 
By  the  MACMILLAN   COMPANY. 


Set  up  and  electrotyped.    Published  April,  1912. 


Norivood  Press 

J.  S.  Gushing  Co.  —  Berwick  &  Smith  Co. 

Norivood,  Mass.,  U.S.A. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  December  6,  173 1     .         i 
Thanks  the  Duke  for  his  recommendation  to  Governor 
Belcher. 
Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  July  i,  1733     .     .     .        2 
Reasons  for  refusing  post  of  Judge  of  Admiralty  offered 
by  Belcher, 
Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  August  4,   1733     •     •         4 
Asks    appointment  as  Surveyor-General   of  Woods  in 
America  or  of  Surveyor  of  Lands  in  Nova  Scotia. 
Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  December  22,   1736  .         6 
Massachusetts    intends    to    contest   Crown's    right   to 
King's  Woods  fit  for  the  Navy. 
Mrs.  Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  March  2,  1736/7         8 

Position  desired  for  her  husband. 
Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  January  ii,  1737/8.       10 

Requests  post  as  Attorney-General  of  Virginia. 
Mrs.  Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  July  19,   1738.       11 

Asks  post  of  Naval  Officer  in  New  England  for  Shirley. 
Duke  of  Newcastle  to  Mrs.  Shirley,  July  23,  1738  .       12 

Hopes  to  obtain  an  appointment  for  her  husband. 
Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  March  3,   1738/9  .     .       13 
Denies  participation  in  plan  to  oust  Governor  Belcher 
from  office. 
Mrs.   Shirley    to    Duke    of    Newcastle,    March    13, 

1739/40. IS 

Appointment  of  Shirley  as   Governor  of  New  Hamp- 
shire. 
Duke  of  Newcastle  to  Shirley,  April  5,  1740  ...       17 
Expedition  against  the  West  Indies.     Dissatisfaction 
with  Governor  Belcher. 
Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  May  12,  1740  ...       20 
Loyalty  of  New  England  to  the  Crown.     Hopes  to  be 
^?  of  service  to  the  King. 

r 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 


Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  August  4,   1740     .     .       22 
Assistance  offered  Governor  Belcher  in  promoting  new 
levies  has  been  declined. 

Lords  of  Trade,  June  25,   1741 28 

Draft  of  commission  to  Shirley  as  Governor  of  Mas- 
sachusetts. 

Mrs.  Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  July  5,  1741    .       37 
As  to  the  appointment  of  a  Naval  Officer  at  Boston. 

Lords  of  Trade  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  July  22,  1741       38 
Transmit  instructions  for  Shirley  as  Governor  of  Mas- 
sachusetts. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  August  23,  1741   .     .       39 
Acknowledges  appointment  as  Governor.     Conditions 
in  province. 

Lords  Justices  to  Shirley,  September  10,   1741  ...       43 
General  instructions  as  Governor  of  Massachusetts. 

Lords  Justices  to  Shirley,  September  id,   1741  ...       73 
Instructions  as  to  Navigation  and  Trade  Laws. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  October  17,   1741       .       76 
Conditions  in  province.     Land  Bank  scheme. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  January  23,  1741/2   .       79 
Royal  instructions.     Suppression  of  Land  Bank.     Re- 
cruits in  province. 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  April  30,   1742     ....       83 
Provincial  bills  of  credit.     Effect  of  act  against  silver 
scheme  and  Land  Bank. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  May  4,  1742     ...       86 
Promises  diligence  for  his  son  as  naval  officer.     Speaks 
favorably  of  Secretary  Willard. 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  June  23,   1742      ....       87 
Regarding  settlement  of  salary  upon  him. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  September  15,  1742  .       89 
Suppression  of  Land  Bank.     Forts  in  the  East.     Com- 
mands regarding  Josiah  Willard. 

Shirley  to  Lord  President  of  the  Council,  November 

I,  1742 •    _ ;     .      93 

Ordnance    for    Castle    William.      Expeditions    against 
Pemaquid  and  the  Spanish  West  Indies. 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  January  24,  1742/3      .     .       95 
Massachusetts  bills  of  credit. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  January  30,  1742/3     .     .      98 
Land  Bank  scheme.     Acts  passed  under  Belcher  gov- 
ernment not  presented  for  approval  of  Crown. 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  March  19,  1742/3    .     .     .     loi 
Opposition  to  act  to  ascertain  value  of  money. 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  November  7,   1743  .     .     .     107 
Concerning  the  Land  Bank.     Incloses  act  for  approval 
of  Crown. 
France,  Declaration  of  War  against  Great  Britain, 

March  15,  1743/4 112 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  March  19,  1743/4     •     ^S 
Ten  companies  of  snow-shoe  men  raised  for  Indian  war- 
fare.    Will  put  provincial  forces  in  good  condition. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  March  23,  1743/4      .     116 
Thanks  of  Massachusetts  for  stores  received. 

Great  Britain,  Declaration  of  War  against  France, 

March  29,  1744 117 

Duke  of  Newcastle  to  Shirley,  March  31,  1744    .     .     121 
Incloses  declarations  of  war  between  Great  Britain  and 
France. 

Shirley  to  General  Court  of  Massachusetts,  May  31, 

1744 122 

Defense  of  Annapolis   Royal   until   arrival  of  British 
forces. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  June  2,  1744     .     .     .     125 
Has  proclaimed   the  war  between  Great  Britain  and 
France. 

Shirley  to  John  Stoddard,  June  2,  1744 127 

Declaration  of  war  against  France.     Proceedings  on 
the  frontier. 

Shirley  to  John  Stoddard,  June  3,  1744 128 

Order  for  enlistment  of  troops  for  defense  of  western 
frontier. 

Shirley  to  John  Stoddard  and  Others,  June  8,  1744  .     129 
Commission     as     Massachusetts     representatives     at 
Albany. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  July  7,   1744     .     .     .     131 
Probable  French  attack  on  Annapolis  Royal.     Arrival 
of  women   and   children  from  Canso.     Letter  from 
governor  of  Louisbourg. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  July  25,  1744      .     .     .     .     134 
Security  of  Annapolis  Royal.     Exchange  of  prisoners 
with  French.     Proposals  for  neutrality  of  New  Eng- 
land and  Cape  Breton. 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  August  id,   1744      .     •     .     138 
Measures  taken  for  defense  of  Massachusetts.     Treaty 
with  Indians  renewed.     Bills  of  credit. 

Great  Britain,  Crown,  September  6,  1744 142 

Order  in  Council  approving  conduct  of  Shirley. 

Great  Britain,  Crown,  September  9,  1744 144 

Royal  instructions  to  Shirley,  allowing  emission  of  over 
£3000  in  bills  of  credit  for  the  war. 
Shirley  to  Duke   of  Newcastle,    September   22,   1744     145 
Arrival    of    French    ships    at    Louisbourg.      Probable 
attack  upon  Annapolis  Royal.     Equipment  of  priva- 
teers by  Massachusetts. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  September  24,  1744       149 
Escape  of  two  counterfeiters  from  Salem  gaol. 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  October  16,  1744    .     .     .     150 
Vessels  sent  to  Annapolis  Royal.     Relations  with  Cape 
Sable  and  St.  John's  Indians. 

Shirley  to   Benning   Wentworth,  November  10,  1744     151 
Importance  of  Louisbourg  to  America  is  to  be  shown 
in  England. 

Shirley  to  Jonathan  Law,  November  19,  1744   .     .     .     152 
Outlook  to  be  kept  for  English  deserters  from  Castle 
William. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  December  7,  1744     .     153 
Forwarding  a  pipe  of  wine. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  December  20,   1744.     154 
Massachusetts  and  New  Hampshire  to  act  together  in 
any  war. 

Duke  of  Newcastle  to  Shirley,  January  3,  1744/5     •     ^55 
Directions  as  to  proceedings  against  the  French. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  January  5,  1744/5     •     I57 
Arrival  of  provisions  and  clothing  at  Annapolis  Royal. 
Fortifications    to    be    erected    on    island   off    Castle 
William. 

Shirley  to  General  Court  of  Massachusetts,  January 

9,  1744/5 159 

Urges  an  attack  upon  Cape  Breton. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  January  14,  1744/5  •     161 
Advantages  to  the  French  of  Cape  Breton  and  Louis- 
bourg.     Reduction  of  the  latter  necessary  for  safety 
of  Nova  Scotia,  Annapolis  Royal,  etc. 

Shirley  to  Justices  of  the  Peace  and  Other  Officers, 

January  14,  1744/5 166 

Instructions  to  assist  Benning  Wentworth  in  execution 
of  office  of  Surveyor-General  of  the  King's  Woods. 

Shirley  to  General  Court  of  Massachusetts,  January 

19,  1744/5  •.•••. 167 

Expedition  against  Louisbourg  and  Cape  Breton. 

Shirley  to  General  Court  of  Massachusetts,  January 

23,  1744/5 167 

Argues  in  favor  of  an  attack  upon  Louisbourg. 

Massachusetts  General  Court,  January  25,  1744/5   •     169 
Resolutions  in  reply  to  Shirley's  proposals  for  an  attack 
upon  Louisbourg. 

Shirley  to  Jonathan  Law,  January  29,  1744/5   •     •     •     171 
Proposals  for  an  expedition  against  Louisbourg. 

Shirley  to  William  Greene,  January  29,  1744/5     .     .     172 
Same. 

Shirley  to  the  Lords  of  the  Admiralty,  January  29, 

1744/S 173 

Same. 

Shirley  to   Benning   Wentworth,  January  31,  1744/5     ^11 
Same. 

Shirley  to   Benning  Wentworth,  February  2,  1744/5     17^ 
Further  emissions  of  paper  money. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  February  3,  1744/5     178 
Acknowledges  aid  promised  for  Louisbourg  expedition. 

Shirley  to  George  Thomas,  February  4,   1744/5      •     •     ^79 
Aid  furnished  by  New  Hampshire  and  Rhode  Island 
against  Louisbourg.     Need  of  naval  assistance. 

Shirley  to  Richard  Cutt,  Jr.,  February  5,   1744/5      •     181 
Instructions  for  enlistment  of  volunteers. 

Shirley  to  Supervisors  of  Enlistments,  February  13, 

1744/5 182 

Same. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  February  13,  1744/5     183 
Enlistment  of  soldiers  in  York  County. 

iz 


CONTENTS 

PACE 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  February  14,  1744/5     184 
New  Hampshire  levies  to  go  with  Massachusetts  troops. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  February  17,  1744/s     185 
Need  of  haste  in  preparation  of  troops. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  February  18,  1744/5     186 
Death  of  writer's   daughter.     Preparations  for  Louis- 
bourg  expedition. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  February  26,  1744/5     187 
Minor  importance  of  arrangement  of  troops  by  com- 
panies. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  February  26,  1744/5     188 
Forwards   bounty   money.     Troops   to   be  hurried   to 
Boston. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  March  2,   1744/5      •     ^9^ 
Transportation  of  troops.     Insurance  of  vessels. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  March  8,   1744/5  •     •     ^93 
Orders  for  embarkation  at  Boston  for  Cape  Breton. 

Shirley  to  Roger  Wolcott,  March  8,  1744/5      •     •     •     ^93 
Incloses  commission  as  second  in  command  in  Louis- 
bourg  expedition. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  March  19,  1744/5     •     ^94 
Instructions  regarding  establishment  of  court  martials. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  March  27,  1745     .     .     196 
Troops  raised  for  Cape  Breton.     Has  applied  to  Peter 
Warren  for  ships  of  war. 

Shirley  to  William  Greene,  March  28,  1745      .     .     .     200 
Authorizes  impressment  for  Louisbourg  expedition. 

Shirley  to  Roger  Wolcott,  March  30,  1745  ....     201 
Behavior  of  certain  officers  on  Louisbourg  expedition. 

Shirley  to  General  Court  of  Massachusetts,  April 

3,  1745 •     • 202 

Progress  made  and  measures  used  in  Louisbourg  expe- 
dition. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  April  8,  1745  .     .     .     203 
Proposes  a  second  expedition  against  Canada. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  April  10,  1745      .     .     205 
Progress    of    Commodore    Warren.     Other    reenforce- 
ments. 

Benning  Wentworth  to  Shirley,  April  12,  1745      .     .     206 

Proposals  for  further  conquests. 


CONTENTS 


Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  April  23,  1745      ,     . 
Supplies  of  provisions  are  being  forwarded. 

John  Stoddard  to  Shirley,  April  24,  1745 

Fears  Six  Nations  will  go  over  to  the  French. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  April  26,   1745      •     • 
Is  forwarding  assistance  against  Louisbourg. 

Shirley  to  Jonathan  Law,  April  27,   1745 

Urges  military  assistance  for  Hampshire  County. 

Shirley  to  Jonathan  Law,  April  27,  1745 

Calls  attention  to  fugitives  from  Massachusetts  justice 
hiding  in  Connecticut. 

Shirley  to  Gideon  Wanton,  May  3,  1745 

Massachusetts  deserters  hidden  in  Rhode  Island. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  May  5,   1745     .     .     . 
Arrival  of  the  Princess  Mary  and  Hector.     Royal  ap- 
proval of  the  Louisbourg  expedition. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  May  13,  1745  .     .     . 
Relating  to  the  expenses  of  the  New  Hampshire  con- 
tingent of  troops. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  May  17,  1745   .     .     . 
Advises  the  dismissal  of  certain  naval  auxiliaries. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  May  25,  1745   .     .     . 
Reenforcements  promised  by  several  American  colonies. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  June  2,   1745     .     .     . 
French  and  Indians  have  raised  the  siege  of  Annapolis 
and  gone  to  Louisbourg.     Stores  sent  to  Canso. 

William  Pepperrell  to  Shirley,  June  2,  1745     .     .     . 
Progress   of   Louisbourg    expedition.      Relations    with 
Commodore  Warren. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  June  3,  1745 
Men  and  ammunition  being  forwarded  to  him 

Shirley  to  Gideon  Wanton,  June  6,   1745  . 
In  regard  to  manning  the  Vigilant. 

Shirley  to  Jonathan  Law,  June  15,  1745    . 
Need  of  reenforcements  at  Louisbourg. 

Jonathan  Law  to  Shirley,  June  19,  1745    . 
Massachusetts  fugitives  hiding  in  Connecticut 

Shirley  to  Gideon  Wanton,  June  24,  1745 

Suggests  that  an  embargo  be  placed  on  powder 


PAGE 

208 


209 

211 

212 

213 
214 

216 

218 
219 
221 

222 

225 
227 
229 
230 
231 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

William  Pepperrell  to  Shirley,  July  4,  1745     •     •     •     232 
Capitulation  of  Louisbourg.     Departure  of  John  Rous 
for  England. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  July  7,  1745     .     .     .     234 
Approves  terms  of  capitulation.     Considers  it  necessary 
for  Pepperrell  to  remain  with  the  troops.     Will  come 
to  Louisbourg  later. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  July  7,  1745     .     .     .     236 
Instructs  Pepperrell  not  to   agree  to  Warren's  desire 
to  command  on  land.     Further  reenforcements  are 
raised  for  expedition. 

SniRLEif  to  William  Pepperrell,  July  9,  1745     .     .     .     238 
Designates  the  Ccssar  for  the  Rhode  Island  seamen. 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  July  10,  1745      ....     239 
An  account  of  the  reduction  of  Louisbourg. 

Shirley  to  Penobscot  and  Norridgewalk  Indians,  July 

12,  1745 •     247 

Duplicity  of  the  French.     Confidence  to  be  placed  in 
the  English. 

Josiah  Willard  to  Jonathan  Law,  July  12,  1745    .     .     248 
Convoy    ready   for    Louisbourg.      Indian   outbreak   in 
New  Hampshire. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  July  16,  1745  .     .     .     249 
Plans  to  come  to  Louisbourg  in   the  Hector.     Hopes 
Pepperrell  will  not  leave  the  service  at  present. 

William  Pepperrell  to  Shirley,  July  17,  1745  •     •     •     250 
Agreement  with  Warren.     Condition  of  Colonial  troops. 
Awaits  with  impatience  the  coming  of  Shirley. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  July  21,  1745    .     .     .     251 
Repairs  upon  fortifications  at  Louisbourg  and  expenses 
of  maintaining  a  garrison  at  that  point. 

Shirley  to  Jabez  Bradbury,  July  22,  1745      ....     253 
Relating  to  the  Penobscot  Indians  and  hostilities  on 
the  St.  George's  River. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  July  27,  1745   .     .     .     254 
Cares  of  government  have  affected  his  health  and  for- 
tune. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  July  29,  1745  .     .     .     256 
Is  about  to  sail  for  Louisbourg.     Supplies  will  be  for- 
warded.    Pride  in  behavior  of  Massachusetts  troops. 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 


Jabez  Bradbury  to  Shirley,  July  29,  1745      ....     261 
Outbreak    among   the    Penobscot    Indians.     [Need   for 
assistance. 
William  Pepperrell  to  Shirley,  August  6,   1745     .     .     262 
French  and  Colonial  forces  in  Canada.     Inadequacy  of 
supplies.     Dissatisfaction  among  the  troops. 
Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  September  2,  1745  .     264 
Conditions  among  provincial  forces.     Probable  effort  of 
French  to  retake  Louisbourg  necessitates  large  gar- 
rison. 
Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  September  27,  1745  .     265 
Appreciates  royal  approval  of  capture  of  Louisbourg. 
Fortress  to  be  put  in  state  of  defense.     Warren  for 
governor  of  city. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  October  2,  1745  .     .     271 
Continuance  of  soldiers  of  Louisbourg  expedition  in  the 
royal  service. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  October  7,  1745   .     .     272 
Requests  appointment  of  Christopher  Kilby  as  agent 
of  regiment  formed  from  Pepperrell' s  troops. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  October  28,   1745      •     273 
Official  account  of  the  Louisbourg  expedition. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  October  29,   1745      .     280 
On  his  return  to  New  England  recommends  a  garrison 
of  four  thousand  for  Louisbourg.     Sale  of  European 
commodities  should  be  increased. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  November  6,  1745     .     287 
Valuable  services  of  officers  in  Louisbourg  expedition. 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  November  16,  1745      .     .     291 
Proposals   for  maintaining  control  of  Louisbourg  and 
Canada. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  November  20,  1745  .     291 
Request  for  coal  land  in  Cape  Breton. 

Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  November  22,  1745  .     292 
Proposes  the  dismissal  of  Edward  Eveleth. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  December  14,  1745   •     293 
Conditions  at  Louisbourg.     Two  American  regiments  to 
be  organized  on  English  establishment.     Importance 
of  French  post  at  Crown  Point. 

Shirley  to   Benning  Wentworth,   December    17,  1745     3°'^ 
Abundant  Colonial  business  to  occupy  the  winter. 


CONTENTS 


PAOE 


Shirley  to   Benning  Wentworth,   December  31,  1745     30i 

Action  upon  appropriation  bills  as  presented. 
Shirley  to   Benning  Wentworth,  January   20,  1745/6     302 
Information  from  Governor  Clinton  regarding  an  attack 
upon  Crown  Point. 

William   Pepperrell  and   Peter  Warren  to  Shirley, 

January  28,   1745/6    •     •  , 303 

Weakness  of  garrison  at  Louisbourg  through  sickness. 

Need  of  additional  forces  and  renewal  of  provisions. 

Shirley  to    Benning  Wentworth,  January  30,  1745/6     306 

Enlarged  powers  for  New  Hampshire  officials. 
Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  February   9,  1745/6     307 
Requests   permission   to   recruit  his   regiment   in  New 
Hampshire. 
William  Pepperrell  to  Shirley,  February  20,  1745/6     308 
Arrangements  for  recruiting  two  regiments  on  the  Eng- 
lish establishment. 
Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  March  i,  1745/6  .     .     310 
Conditions  at  Louisbourg.     Arrangements  for  relief  of 
garrison. 
William  Pepperrell  to  Shirley,  March  20,  1745/6     .     312 
Arrival  of  troops  from  Great  Britain.     Progress  in  en- 
listment of  Colonial  regiments. 
Shirley  to  William  Pepperrell,  April  i,  1746  .     .     .     313 
Advises    Pepperrell    to   keep    informed    regarding   regi- 
mental recruiting. 
William  Pepperrell  to  Shirley,  April  6,   1746  .     .     .     314 
Transportation  of  troops.     Dissatisfaction  of  officers  at 
Louisbourg. 
Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  April  23,  1746     .     .     316 

Enlistment  of  volunteers  in  New  Hampshire. 
William  Pepperrell  and  Peter  Warren   to   Shirley, 

May  6,  1746 317 

Not  prudent  to  weaken  garrison  at  Louisbourg.     Will 
send  troops  home  only  as  replaced  by  volunteers. 
Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  May  27,  1746  .     .     .     318 
Appointment   of   commissioners   to  meet  others   from 
New  York. 
Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  May  31,  1746  .     .     .     319 
Comments  upon  letter  from  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Shirley,  Proclamation,  June  2,  1746 323 

Enlistments  for  expedition  against  Canada. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  June  6,  1746   .     .     .     324 
Congratulations  on  success  with  New  Hampshire  assem- 
bly. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  June  8,  1746    .     .     .     326 
Selection  of  officers  for  provincial  troops. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  June  18,  1746  .     .     .     327 
Thanks  the  Duke  for  recommending  him  to  command. 
Suggestions  as  to  policy  to  be  followed  in  Acadie. 

Shirley  and  Peter  Warren  to  William  Greene,  July  4, 

1746  .-     •     •. 329 

Expedition  against  Canada. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  July  7,  1746     .     .     .     332 
Importance  of  Quebec  in  a  conquest  of  Canada. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  July  28,  1746  .     .     .     334 
Necessity  of  British  naval  control  of  mouth  of  St.  Law- 
rence. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  July  29,  1746  .     .     .     335 
Provision  for  troops  prior  to  their  embarkation. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  August  15,  1746    .     .     336 
Best  method  of  securing  loyalty  of  Nova  Scotia. 

Paul  Mascarene  to  Shirley,  August  20,  1746     .     .     .     337 
French  movements  in  eastern  Canada. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  August  24,  1746  .     .     339 
Advises    against   the    abandonment    of    Cape    Breton. 
Great  annoyance  caused  by  French  at  Crown  Point. 
Shirley  and  Peter  Warren  to   Benning  Wentworth, 

August  25,  1746 342 

Campaign  against  Canada,  with  emphasis  on  movements 
against  fortresses  on  lakes  George  and  Champlain. 
Shirley  to   General   Court   of   Massachusetts,    Sep- 
tember 9,  1746 346 

Dangers  in  Nova  Scotia  and  from  fortress   at  Crown 
Point. 
Massachusetts  General  Court  to  Shirley,  September 

10,  1746 350 

Diversion   of   provincial   forces   from  Nova    Scotia   to 
Crown  Point. 
Shirley  and  Peter  Warren  to  Benning  Wentworth, 

September  12,  1746 351 

Most    advantageous    employment   of   New  Hampshire 
forces. 

XV 


CONTENTS 


Shirley  to  Paul  Mascarene,  September  i6,  1746    .     .     354 
Loyal  French  need  not  fear  transportation. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  September   20,    1746    355 
Danger  from  French  fleet. 

Shirley  and  Peter  Warren  to  Benning  Wentworth, 

September  23,  1746 356 

Grant  of  men  by  New  Hampshire  for  defense. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,   September   29,  1746     357 
Warning  to  Admiral  Lestock  of  danger  from  the  French. 

Shirley  and  Peter  Warren  to  William  Greene,  Octo- 
ber 14,  1746 358 

Urge  Rhode  Island  to  send  reenforcements  to  Nova 
Scotia. 
Shirley  and  Peter  Warren  to  William  Greene,  Octo- 
ber 23,  1746 359 

Conditions  in  Nova  Scotia.     Commission  for  Edward 
Kinnicut. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  October  25,  1746     .     361 
Forwards  examinations  of  various  seamen  as  to  dangers 
from  foreign  war  vessels. 

Shirley  to  William  Greene,  October  27,  1746    .     .     .     364 
Reenforcements  for  Annapolis  Royal. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  October  28,  1746     .     365 
Reenforcements  sent  to  Annapolis  Royal. 

Shirley  to  William  Greene,  November  4,  1746  .     .     .     366 
Movements  of  French.     Need  for  Rhode  Island  troops. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,   November   ii,    1746     367 
Plans  for  campaign  in  Nova  Scotia. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  November  12,  1746  .     368 
Plans  for  expedition  against  Crown  Point. 

Shirley  to  John  Stoddard,  November  13,  1746   .     .     .     370 
Dismissal  of  troops  gathered  for  invasion  of  Canada. 

Shirley  to  Paul  Mascarene,  December  19,  1746     .     .     370 
Relative  to  removal  of  French  from  Nova  Scotia. 

Shirley  to  Benning  Wentworth,  December  22,  1746  .     373 
Disposition  of  New  Hampshire  forces. 

Benjamin  Seally  and  William  Furness,  December  31, 

1746 ; 373| 

Deposition     regarding    encounter   with    French    fleet. 
French  plans  against  Annapolis. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Shirley  to  Peter  Warren,  January  2,  1746/7     .     .     .     376 
Reimbursement  from  England  for  expenses  of  Louis- 
bourg  campaign. 

Shirley  to  William  Greene,  January  5,  1746/7       .     .     377 
Boundary  disputes  between  Rhode  Island  and  Massa- 
chusetts. 

Shirley  to  William  Greene,  February  7,  1746/7    .     .     378 
Alliance  with  Indians   in  New  York  dependent  upon 
prompt  action. 

Shirley  to  William  Greene,  February  9,  1746/7    .     .     379 
Aid  in  Nova  Scotia  will  enable  Massachusetts  to  meet 
the  situation  in  New  York. 

William  Greene  to  Shirley,  February  20,   1746/7  .     .     381 
Assembly  declines  to  send  troops  to  Crown  Point  or 
Annapolis. 

Josiah  Willard  to  William  Greene,  March  5,  1746/7     382 
Grant   by    Parliament   for   expenses    of   Cape   Breton 
expedition. 

Shirley  to  John  Stoddard,  April  10,  1747 383 

Defenses  for  Massachusetts  frontiers. 

Shirley  to  Gideon  Wanton,  May  18,  1747       .     .     .     .     384 
Six  Nations  ready  to  act  against  French  if  rewarded. 
Hopes  Rhode  Island  can  do  something. 
Duke  of  Newcastle  to  Shirley,  May  30,   1747   .     .     .     386 
Instructions  as  to  completion  of  regiments  of  Shirley 
and   Pepperrell.     Treatment  to  be  accorded   Nova 
Scotia. 
Shirley  to  Selectmen  of  Boston,  June  23,  1747     .     .     389 

Need  of  wood.     Wishes  convoy  for  eastern  vessels. 
Shirley  to  Gideon  Wanton,  June  29,  1747      ....     390 

Provincial  Congress  at  Albany  in  September. 
Shirley  to  George  Clinton,  July  24,  1747      ....     392 

Danger  of  Six  Nations  going  over  to  the  French. 
Shirley  to  George  Clinton,  August  15,   1747      .     .     .     393 
Importance  of  expedition  against  Nova  Scotia.     Re- 
grets attitude  of  William  Johnson  toward  John  H. 
Lydius. 
Shirley  to  Gideon  Wanton,  August  20,  1747       .     .     .     394 

Arrangements  for  exchange  of  prisoners  with  Canada. 
Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  August  24,  1747  .     .     395 
French  views  regarding  Nova  Scotia. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  August  31,  1747  .     .     397 
Forwards   packet  by  his   son,   for  whom  he  requests 
military  experience  in  Flanders. 

Shirley  to  George  Clinton,  August  31,  1747      .     .     .     398 
Regarding  an  alliance  with  Six  Nations. 

Shirley  to  George  Clinton,  September  14,  1747     .     .     399 
Financial    assistance   from    the   Crown  for  an   Indian 
alliance. 

Duke  of  Newcastle  to  Shirley,  October  3,   1747   .     .     401 
Security  of  Nova  Scotia.     Importance  of  Crown  Point. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  October  20,  1747.     .     404 
The  French  in  Nova  Scotia. 

Shirley  to  Josiah  Willard,  November  19,  1747  .     .     .     406 
Insults   of   mob    at   Boston.      Letter   from  Governor 
Knowles. 

Shirley,  Proclamation,  November  21,  1747     ....     410 
Apprehension  of  rioters  in  insurrection. 

Shirley  to  Lords  of  Trade,  December  i,  1747  .     .     .     412 
Riot  in  Boston  regarding  impressment. 

Shirley  to  Gideon  Wanton,  December  28,  1747       .     .     419 
Meeting  of  commissioners  at  Middletown. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  December  31,  1747  .     420 
General  Court  wishes  to  be  relieved  from  impressing 
seamen  for  service  on  warships. 

William  Shirley,  Jr.,  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  Janu- 
ary 14,  1747/8 424 

Presents   request  of  his   father  that  John   Shirley  be 
given  military  experience  in  Flanders. 

George  Clinton  to  Shirley,  February  17,  1747/8  .     .     425 
Will  endeavor  to  keep  Indians  loyal  to  Crown.     Ex- 
pects liberal  grants  from  provincial  assembly. 

Shirley  to  George  Clinton,  March  2,  1747/8     .     .     .     426 
Importance  of  expedition  against  Crown  Point. 

Shirley  to  George  Clinton,  March  22,  1747/8  .     .     .     427 
Participation  of  Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey  in  cam- 
paign against  Crown  Point. 

Shirley  to  Six  Nations,  July  23-27,  1748 429 

Negotiations  at  conference  at  Albany. 

Shirley  to  Marquis  La  Galissoniere,  July  29,  1748  .     437 
Position  of  Six  Nations.     Exchange  of  prisoners. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Shirley  to  George  Clinton,  August  13,  1748      .     .     .    441 
Political  conditions  in  Massachusetts  and  New  York. 

Shirley  and  Clinton  to  Lords  of  Trade,  August  18, 

1748 449 

Military  and  Indian  affairs. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Bedford,  October  24,  1748      .     .     456 
Participation  of  the  several  colonies  in  Canadian  expe- 
dition. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  October  28,   1748      .     457 
Defense  of  writer's  conduct  in  Canadian  campaign. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Bedford,  January  10,  1748/9  .     .     460 
Payment  of  troops  in  the  several  colonies. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Bedford,  January  31,   1748/9  .     .     462 
Paper  currency  in  Massachusetts  and  New  England. 

Shirley  to  James  Hamilton,  February  20,   1748/9  .     .     468 
Preparations  of  French  to  resist  English  advance. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Bedford,  February  27,  1748/9     .     470 
Submits  general   heads    of  a   charter  government  for 
Nova  Scotia. 

Shirley,  Plan  for  Civil  Government  of  Nova  Scotia.     472 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Bedford,  April  24,   1749      .     .     .     478 
French  plan  to  settle  about  Crown  Point.     Importance 
of  Nova  Scotia.  Message  of  Massachusetts  Assembly. 

Shirley  to  Marquis  La  Galissoniere,  May  9,   1749     .     481 
Status  of  the  Abenaqui  Indians. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Bedford,  May  10,  1749  ....     485 
Relations  with  the  French  in  Canada  and  Nova  Scotia. 

George  Clinton  to  Shirley,  May  19,   1749      ....     487 
Canadian  Indians  being  stirred  up  against  the  English. 
Need  of  diligence  on  part  of  latter. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Bedford,  June  18,  1749  ....     488 
Conditions  in  Nova  Scotia. 

Shirley  to  Spencer  Phips,  September  ii,  1749    .     .     .     489 
Redemption  of  paper  money  in  Massachusetts.     Direc- 
tions for  administration  of  the  government. 

JosiAH  WiLLARD  TO  Shirley,  December  11-19,   1749      •     49^ 
Financial  and  political  conditions  in  Massachusetts. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  January  23,  1749/50     493 
Vindication    of  writer's    administration  of  Massachu- 
setts.    Pleasant  relations  with  the  people. 
xix 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Shirley  to  Josiah  Willard,  February  13,  1749/50 .     .     498 
Cessation  of  paper  currency  in  Massachusetts. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  March  28,  1750    .     .     499 
Hopes  to  receive  favors  equal  to  those  shown  Cornwallis. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  April  id,  1750       .     .     505 
Services  rendered  to  Crown  in  America. 

Josiah  Willard  to  Spencer  Phips,  April,  1750    .     .     .     506 
Money  received  from  Crown  is  to  establish  new  system 
of  currency.     Release  of  captives  in  Canada. 

Shirley  to  Duke  of  Newcastle,  September  7,  1750  .      508 
Asks  appointment  as  Governor  of  New  York. 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

Portrait  of  William  Shirley Frontispiece 

A  Plan  of  the  Siege  of  Louisbourg,  1745  .    facing  page  218 
An  Autograph  Letter  of  William  Shirley    facing  page  410 


XX, 


INTRODUCTION 

William  Shirley  was  one  of  the  few  popular  English 
governors  in  America  during  the  Colonial  period.  Born  in 
Sussex  County,  England,  on  December  2,  1694,  he  was  de- 
scended from  an  old  and  distinguished  English  family.  The 
son  of  a  London  merchant,  he  was  for  a  considerable  time 
identified  with  that  center  of  the  English  world  as  a  law- 
yer, and  there  acquired  a  good  knowledge  of  the  intrigues 
which  characterized  the  Court  of  George  II  and  the  methods 
employed  to  secure  results  in  the  government  of  Great 
Britain.  Coming  to  America  in  173 1,  he,  ten  years  later,  be- 
came a  governor  of  Massachusetts,  approved  by  the  people 
of  that  colony  and  trusted  by  his  official  superiors  at  Lon- 
don. The  words  used  by  Mrs.  Shirley  in  her  letter  to  the 
Duke  of  Newcastle,  March  2,  1737,  when  seeking  office  for 
her  husband,  contained  much  truth  :  "From  his  own  capacity 
and  the  general  esteem  the  people  have  for  him,  he  may  be 
of  great  service  to  the  Crown,  and  I  am  sure  will  employ  his 
utmost  ability  and  industry  in  return  for  any  favors  bestowed 
on  him,  and  I  may  venture  to  say  the  King  wants  such  men 
in  America." 

Shirley's  experience  in  America  during  the  ten  years 
preceding  his  appointment  as  governor  was  a  good  prepara- 
tion for  his  duties  as  chief  executive  of  the  colony,  and  con- 
tributed much  to  the  efficiency  shown  by  him  in  that  posi- 
tion. As  Surveyor  of  the  King's  Woods  he  learned  the 
value  of  the  forests  of  New  England,  and  particularly  of  the 
tall  pines  reserved  for  use  as  masts  in  the  royal  navy;  and 
the  knowledge  of  the  geography  and  resources  of  north- 
eastern America  gained  when  in  this  office  served  him  in 
good  stead  in  the  defense  of  the  country  during  his  fifteen 
years  of  warfare  against  the  French  and  Indians  in  his  double 
position  as  governor  of  Massachusetts  and  Military  Com- 


INTRODUCTION 

mander  in  America.  In  1733  Shirley  was  offered  the  post  of 
Judge  of  Admiralty  by  Governor  Belcher.  Writing  to  the 
Duke  of  Newcastle  on  July  i  of  that  year,  he  declared  that 
the  position  tendered  him  was  dependent  upon  the  good 
will  of  the  Provincial  Assembly,  and  that  for  this  reason  he 
could  not,  as  judge,  adequately  defend  the  rights  of  the 
Crown  in  America ;  he  felt  himself  therefore  bound  to  de- 
cline the  honor  extended  him.  In  1734  he  became  "the 
King's  only  Advocate-general  in  America"  {i.e.  all  of  New 
England  except  Connecticut),  and  on  January  2,  1737-8, 
he  applied  to  Newcastle  for  the  post  of  Naval  Officer  for 
Massachusetts,  a  position  which  Governor  Belcher's  son- 
in-law  was  seeking  at  the  hands  of  Sir  Robert  Walpole ; 
but  he  was  unsuccessful  in  this  application. 

While  thus  acquiring  a  reputation  as  a  loyal  champion 
of  the  King's  interests  and  avoiding  so  far  as  possible  any 
open  break  with  Belcher,  Shirley  gained  popularity  with  the 
people  of  Massachusetts  and  was  chosen  by  the  Assembly 
to  serve  on  the  commission  to  determine  the  boundary 
line  between  that  colony  and  Rhode  Island.  Meanwhile 
the  boundary  dispute  between  Massachusetts  and  New 
Hampshire  had  become  intense.  Into  the  merits  of  this 
dispute  or  the  arguments  of  the  disputants  it  is  unneces- 
sary to  enter,  but  the  results  of  the  contest  were  important 
in  determining  Shirley's  future.  Governor  Belcher  retired 
from  his  post  as  head  of  the  two  colonies,  and  a  little  later 
was  appointed  chief  executive  of  New  Jersey.  Newcastle, 
who  appears  to  have  promised  the  collectorship  of  the  port 
of  Boston  to  Mrs.  Shirley  for  her  husband,  and  despite  that 
pledge  had  then  given  the  position  to  Charles  Henry  Frank- 
land,  found  in  Belcher's  retirement  an  opportunity  of  redeem- 
ing his  promise  to  do  something  for  Shirley.  He  could  at 
the  same  time  solve  a  colonial  difficulty  and  reward  an 
efficient  officer,  who  had  been  selected  by  his  constituency 
to  serve  in  the  settlement  of  a  similar  dispute  with  a  sister 
colony  and  was  familiar  with  its  merits.  Separating  the 
government  of  New  Hampshire  from  that  of  Massachusetts, 
Newcastle  offered  to  Shirley  the  post  of  chief  executive  of 


INTRODUCTION 

the  latter  colony,  and  this  offer  was  promptly  accepted. 
Shirley  entered  at  once  upon  his  new  duties,  his  appointment 
being  made  on  May  i6,  and  the  draft  of  his  commission  bear- 
ing date  of  June  25,  1741.  His  period  of  service  as  gov- 
ernor extended  to  1756,  and  during  the  year  following  Brad- 
dock's  defeat  and  death  in  1755  he  was  Commander  in  Chief 
of  the  British  forces  in  America. 

Thus  far  no  adequate  biography  of  Governor  Shirley 
has  been  published.  Mr.  J.  A.  Doyle  has  given  a  gen- 
eral outline  of  his  life  and  work  in  the  Dictionary  of  Na- 
tional Biography,  but  this  is  merely  a  sketch.  Bancroft, 
Parkman,  and  other  American  writers  have  reviewed  the 
period  of  his  governorship,  but  so  long  as  the  Shirley 
correspondence  remained  in  large  part  unpublished,  suffi- 
cient basis  for  a  true  estimate  of  his  character  was  lacking. 
The  friendship  of  the  New  England  governor  with  the 
royalist  Hutchinson  seems  to  have  prejudiced  some  of  Amer- 
ica's early  historians,  but  writers  of  a  later  period  have  been 
more  impartial  in  their  estimates.  As  the  feeling  between 
the  mother  country  and  her  American  daughter  has  become 
more  friendly,  the  harsh  judgment  which  American  writers 
were  only  too  willing  to  pass  upon  British  appointments 
In  the  colonies  has  given  place  to  more  just  appreciations. 
It  remains  true  that  Shirley  was  an  office  seeker,  but  who 
among  his  contemporaries  was  not  ^  Official  favor,  due  in 
part  at  least  to  his  wife's  influence  with  Newcastle,  gave 
him  his  position  as  governor  of  Massachusetts ;  but  had  the 
Colonies  and  the  Crown  been  as  well  served  by  other  in- 
termediaries as  by  William  Shirley  their  relations  would 
have  been  much  more  cordial  than  those  generally  exist- 
ing during  the  eighteenth  century.  Shirley's  abilities  may 
have  been  disproportionate  to  his  ambitions,  but  in  many 
respects  the  Massachusetts  governor  was  in  advance  of  his 
time.  He  saw  distinctly  the  real  issue  between  Great  Britain 
and  France  in  America,  and  repeatedly  presented  the  ques- 
tion to  his  superiors  at  London,  urging  adequate  support  for 
Colonial  effort.  He  discovered  in  the  common  weal  the 
true  basis  of  Colonial  loyalty  and  sought  to  promote  that 


INTRODUCTION 

end.  Nor  did  he  insist  that  all  the  credit  for  success  should 
be  his  own.  As  he  wrote  Governor  Wentworth  of  New 
Hampshire,  when  in  March,  1755,  he  was  urging  the  appoint- 
ment of  Sir  William  Johnson  to  command  the  expedition 
against  Crown  Point:  "Provided  his  Majesty's  service  in 
so  essential  a  point  as  the  present  one  is  consulted,  I  care 
not  who  takes  the  lead  in  any  punctilios  attending  it." 

William  Shirley's  work  in  America  was  confined  to  no  single 
line.  Succeeding  Jonathan  Belcher  as  governor  of  Massa- 
chusetts in  May,  1741,  he  carried  through  many  civic  reforms 
in  that  province  for  which  his  predecessor  had  labored. 
Perhaps  the  greatest  of  these  was  the  establishment  of  a 
sound  currency  system.  At  Shirley's  accession  the  rela- 
tive values  of  silver  and  paper  were  as  four  to  one.  Land 
banks  and  other  devices  of  the  time  were  the  suggested 
forms  of  relief,  but  Shirley  considered  none  of  them  an  ade- 
quate solution  of  the  problem.  Taking  advantage  of  a 
successful  war,  he  secured  compensation  from  Great  Britain 
for  the  expense  of  Massachusetts  in  the  northern  campaigns, 
and  by  reserving  for  the  redemption  of  Colonial  paper  the 
coin  received,  he  succeeded  in  fixing  the  colonial  currency 
on  a  specie  basis,  giving  Massachusetts  the  name  of  "the 
hard  money  Colony,"  a  name  she  bore  until  the  Revolution. 

In  the  field  of  military  effort  Shirley's  achievements  were 
no  less  admired.  If  not  a  great  general  he  was  no  mean 
strategist,  and  he  knew  how  to  work  with  provincials.  As 
both  Great  Britain  and  France  were  careless  of  the  wel- 
fare of  their  American  Colonies,  much  depended  upon  the 
latter's  capacity  to  care  for  themselves.  Shirley  realized 
this  fact  and  sought  to  make  united  action  follow  union  of 
interests.  No  such  aid  came  to  him  as  his  efforts  deserved 
or  as  Pitt  supplied  to  his  successors,  but  the  New  England 
governor  accomplished  much.  Reconciling  Admiral  Sir 
Peter  Warren  and  Sir  William  Pepperrell,  and  arousing 
enthusiasm  throughout  New  England,  Shirley  gave  the 
mother  country  her  one  great  victory  in  King  George's 
war  by  the  capture  of  Louisbourg.  Of  this  expedition 
Doyle  writes  in  his   sketch  of   Shirley:    "Probably  every 


INTRODUCTION 

prudent  strategist  would  have  deemed  the  scheme  foolhardy." 
In  the  somewhat  similar  case  of  the  attack  upon  Quebec  by 
Wolfe  fourteen  years  later,  Parkman,  in  his  "  Conspiracy  of 
Pontiac,"  states  that  the  problem  how  to  invest  the  city  or 
even  bring  the  army  of  Montcalm  to  action  "might  have 
perplexed  a  Hannibal  "  ;  but  in  each  of  these  campaigns,  as 
so  frequently  in  military  activities,  fortune  favored  the 
attacking  party.  With  Shirley,  as  with  Wolfe,  the  bolder 
course  led  to  victory,  and  success  justified  the  venture.  The 
New  England  governor's  letter  of  November  6  to  Newcastle 
shows  his  willingness  to  share  the  credit  of  his  victory  with 
his  associates  and  subordinates  in  command,  thus  securing 
their  continued  loyalty.  In  the  words  of  the  author  of  the 
anonymous  Lettre  d'un  Habitant  de  Louisbourg  the  capture 
of  the  fortress  "  was  an  enterprise  less  of  the  English  nation 
and  its  King  than  of  the  inhabitants  of  New  England  alone." 
I  Gratified  by  Shirley's  success  in  Cape  Breton,  the  Ministry 
accepted  his  plans  for  the  further  conquest  of  Canada  in 
1746-1747,  and  America  responded  to  the  request  of  the 
Massachusetts  governor  with  over  8000  provincial  troops 
drawn  mainly  from  the  northern  colonies.  Another  ener- 
getic and  profitable  campaign  seemed  assured,  and  had 
good  fortune  added  the  cooperation  of  the  English  navy  as 
she  had  in  the  movement  against  Louisbourg,  Shirley  might 
have  obtained  a  still  higher  military  reputation.  British 
regulars  were  to  cooperate  with  the  American  forces,  but 
this  portion  of  the  plan  miscarried,  partly  because  of  bad 
weather  detaining  the  English  fleet,  and  partly  because  of  the 
blunders  of  the  London  government,  and  as  a  result  nothing 
of  importance  was  accomplished  against  the  French  in 
America  during  the  remainder  of  the  war.  The  corre- 
spondence of  the  period  is  worthy  of  publication,  however, 
if  for  no  other  reason  than  to  show  the  extent  to  which  Amer- 
ica's loyalty  and  enthusiasm  had  been  aroused  by  the  success- 
ful leadership  of  Pepperrell,  Wolcott,  and  Shirley  in  the 
Louisbourg  campaign.  Another  consequence  of  the  Louis- 
bourg victory  was  to  bring  forward  Shirley's  opinion  on  a 
question  of  State  policy  which  has  since  then  caused  almost 


INTRODUCTION 

ceaseless  discussion.  How  shall  the  treatment  of  Acadia  by 
Great  Britain  be  regarded  ?  The  question  has  been  an- 
swered hy  poets,  novelists,  and  historians,  and  has  been 
answered  in  widely  differing  ways.  The  problem  of  the 
treatment  of  a  hostile  population  in  conquered  territory  is 
not  an  easy  one  to  solve.  The  defense  of  the  country  was 
left  to  Shirley  by  the  British  Ministry,  and  it  was  upon 
Shirley  that  Lieutenant  Governor  Mascarene  of  Annapolis 
called  when  the  English  possessions  seemed  in  danger. 
Shirley  was  the  most  pronounced  defender  of  British  and 
Colonial  rights  in  America  up  to  the  time  of  Pitt  and  Wolfe. 
From  the  best  information  obtainable  he  believed  the  native 
population  of  Acadia  hostile  to  the  English.  In  October, 
1745,  he  wrote  to  Newcastle  that  "all  the  people  beside  all 
the  Indians"  would  join  the  French  troops  if  France  should 
invade  the  peninsula.  The  French  governor  of  Canada 
shared  this  opinion  and  wrote  his  superiors  at  Paris  to  the 
same  effect.  In  June,  1746,  Shirley  favored  the  removal 
of  "the  most  obnoxious  of  the  French  inhabitants  of  Nova 
Scotia,"  but  he  did  not  believe  in  the  indiscriminate  removal 
of  the  natives,  preferring  rather  to  have  a  new  population  from 
Ulster  and  Hanover  placed  among  the  old,  thus  decreasing 
if  not  entirely  overcoming  the  danger  of  insurrection.  As  he 
wrote  Newcastle  on  November  21,  1746,  his  plan  was  that  of 
"treating  the  Acadians  as  subjects,  confining  their  punish- 
ment to  the  most  guilty  and  dangerous  among  'em,  and  keep- 
ing the  rest  in  the  country  and  endeavoring  to  make  them 
useful  members  of  society  under  his  Majesty's  Government." 
Again  on  July  8,  1747,  speaking  of  Nova  Scotia,  Shirley  ad- 
vised that  the  French  population  of  but  one  district  be  trans- 
planted into  New  England.  He  adds:  "If  the  2000  New 
England  men  were  to  share  among  'em  that  district  upon 
condition  of  their  settling  there  with  their  families  in  such 
a  defensible  manner  as  they  should  be  directed  to  do  .  .  . 
the  inhabitants  of  the  two  other  districts  would  be  constantly 
held  to  their  good  behavior,  and  by  intermarriages  and  the 
spreading  of  the  English  settlement  the  whole  province 
might  become  English  Protestants."     The  same  arguments 


INTRODUCTION 

are  advanced  by  Shirley  in  his  letter  of  May  8,  1754,  to 
Sir  Thomas  Robinson,  but  they  received  no  more  attention 
than  nine  years  earlier.  Had  the  proposals  of  the  Mas- 
sachusetts governor  been  vigorously  carried  out  by  New- 
castle, the  adherence  of  Acadia  might  have  been  secured  in 
1746,  the  question  would  have  been  settled,  and  the  removal 
of  her  inhabitants  in  1755  avoided. 

In  1749  Shirley  obtained  leave  of  absence  from  America, 
and  in  the  following  year  was  sent  to  Paris  to  assist  in  nego- 
tiating with  France  a  settlement  of  the  Canadian  boundary, 
but  the  negotiations  were  indecisive.  The  memorials  of 
the  French  and  English  Commissioners  "concerning  the 
limits  of  Nova  Scotia  or  Acadia,"  the  latter  signed  by  Shir- 
ley and  his  colleague,  are  In  the  Public  Record  Office  at 
London,  but  as  they  are  of  little  interest  in  connection 
with  Shirley's  work  in  America,  they  have  not  been  used 
in  these  volumes.  The  English  memorial  is  dated  at  Paris, 
January  11,  I75i,and  with  the  French  case  makes  a  large 
printed  book.  When  in  Paris,  Shirley  privately  married 
the  daughter  of  his  landlord  as  his  second  wife,  but  this 
marriage  impaired  neither  his  hostility  to  the  French,  nor 
his  loyalty  to  Colony  and  Crown.  On  his  return  to  Boston 
in  1753  he  again  urged  the  prime  minister  to  activity  in 
support  of  Colonial  effort  against  French  hostility,  and  made  a 
good  beginning  for  an  offensive  campaign  by  conciliating  the 
Indians  and  erecting  fortifications  along  the  Maine  border. 
Meanwhile  the  wrangling  of  Newcastle  and  Bedford,  and 
the  mistake  of  Fox  in  angering  the  Duke  of  Cumberland, 
prevented  singleness  of  purpose  at  London  and  effective 
action  In  uniting  the  American  Colonies  "by  a  well-con- 
certed scheme  .  .  .  for  their  mutual  defense "  as  proposed 
by  the  New  England  governor  in  January,  1754.  The 
French  and  Indian  War  followed,  with  the  American  Colonies 
divided  in  interests  and  jealous  of  each  other's  success. 

Shirley's  work  in  America  during  the  period  of  his  mili- 
tary command,  1755-1756,  compared  favorably  with  any- 
thing done  in  the  British  War  Office.  Five  months  before  the 
English  declaration  of  war  he  had  a  well-planned    scheme 


INTRODUCTION 

for  an  offensive  campaign  prepared,  with  Crown  Point, 
Niagara,  and  Fort  Duquesne  as  its  objective  points ;  but 
lack  of  support  compelled  its  abandonment  and  increased 
the  difficulties  under  which  he  labored.  If  there  grew  up 
a  suspicion  that  he  had  been  given  more  to  do  than  his 
military  experience  warranted,  the  lack  of  confidence  in 
the  outcome  of  the  war  felt  by  Pitt  in  England  or  Sir  William 
Johnson  in  America  was  not  assuaged  by  Shirley's  dismis- 
sal in  1756.  Newcastle  distrusted  all  his  political  lieuten- 
ants and  the  Colonial  governments  distrusted  each  other. 
America's  experience  with  Braddock  had  not  increased  her 
confidence  in  British  commanders,  and  difficulties  as  to  the 
comparative  rank  of  British  and  Colonial  officers  at  once 
arose.  The  inefficiency  of  Webb  and  Abercromby,  Shir- 
ley's successors,  each  hampered  by  the  knowledge  that  his 
command  was  provisional,  held  preparations  for  the  war  in 
suspense  when  efficiency  was  essential  and  delay  ruinous. 
The  Earl  of  Loudoun,  succeeding  to  the  chief  command  on 
May  20,  1756,  was  little  better  than  his  immediate  prede- 
cessors. Shirley  had  not  hesitated  in  time  of  action.  His 
energy  had  led  him  to  take  the  initiative  against  Louisbourg 
in  1745,  and  he  had  continued  the  mainstay  of  British 
authority  in  America  since  that  date.  In  Franklin's  opin- 
ion Shirley  would,  if  continued  in  power,  have  made  a 
campaign  much  superior  to  that  of  Loudoun.  As  to  the 
latter's  capacity  in  the  field,  Shelbourne  was  not  far  astray 
when  he  characterized  him  as  a  pen-and-ink  man  whose 
greatest  energies  were  put  forth  in  getting  ready  to  begin. 
The  estimation  in  which  Loudoun  was  held  by  Pitt  is  made 
clear  by  a  study  of  the  latter's  correspondence  with  the 
Colonial  governors  and  military  commanders  in  America, 
and  that  statesman  recalled  him  in  December,  1757,  so  soon 
as  political  conditions  would  allow.  Regarding  the  capac- 
ity of  Shirley,  Franklin  continues  in  his  Autobiography : 
"Though  not  bred  a  soldier,  he  was  sensible  and  sagacious 
in  himself,  attentive  to  good  advice  from  others,  capable 
of  forming  judicious  plans  and  quick  and  active  in  carry- 
ing them  into  execution." 


INTRODUCTION 

Under  conditions  such  as  have  been  pictured,  the  imme- 
diate effects  of  a  change  of  commanders  upon  British  pros- 
pects in  America  is  self-evident.  The  progress  of  the  war 
was  not  aided  by  the  official  declaration  that  no  provincial 
officer  should  rank  above  a  captain  of  regulars,  this  being 
the  effect  of  a  Royal  order  of  May  12,  1756,  ranking  all  gen- 
eral and  field  officers  holding  provincial  commissions  as 
captains  when  serving  with  regular  troops.  General  in- 
dignation was  aroused  in  America,  and  in  certain  cases  the 
provincials  declined  to  serve  with  the  regulars.  No  such 
affront  had  been  offered  Pepperrell's  Colonial  troops  during 
the  Louisbourg  campaign  of  1745,  and  Shirley  would  have 
had  no  desire  to  anger  such  able  lieutenants  as  Bradstreet, 
Lyman,  and  Winslow  in  the  campaign  of  1756,  when  their 
aid  was  most  needed.  Although  treated  with  scant  courtesy 
by  the  new  commander,  and  charged  indeed  with  foment- 
ing the  Colonial  dissatisfaction,  Shirley  at  this  time  did  his 
best  to  smooth  out  the  difficulties  between  Loudoun  and  the 
New  England  officers,  and  wrote  strong  letters  to  Winslow 
to  promote  harmony.  Loudoun's  reply  to  these  efforts  was 
to  urge  Shirley's  immediate  return  to  England,  and  to  insist 
that  the  charges  against  the  late  commander  be  laid  before 
the  Massachusetts  Assembly.  The  letters  of  Shirley  to 
the  English  government  present  his  defense  against  the 
charges  of  Loudoun  so  adequately  that  there  is  no  need  to 
enlarge  upon  the  subject  in  this  place. 

As  has  been  said.  Governor  Shirley  knew  how  to  work  with 
the  provincial  leaders.  He  had  little  of  the  blustering  ar- 
rogance which  Parkman  finds  in  Braddock  and  Amherst. 
It  was  not  merely  his  position  as  governor  of  the  most  popu- 
lous New  England  colony  that  gave  Shirley  his  influence 
with  Governor  Wentworth  of  New  Hampshire,  Governor 
Law  of  Connecticut,  or  Governor  Greene  of  Rhode  Island. 
He  sought  their  assistance  when  it  was  needed  and  showed 
appreciation  of  their  aid  when  given.  Although  Shirley's 
relations  with  New  York  were  less  pleasant,  the  blame  for 
this  cannot  be  laid  wholly  on  the  shoulders  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts governor,  and  his  correspondence  with  Governors 


INTRODUCTION 

Morris,  Sharpe,  and  Dinwiddle  was  most  friendly.  Shir- 
ley's wisdom  appears  when  he  turns  for  counsel  to  that 
leader  among  Americans,  Benjamin  Franklin,  at  a  time 
when  that  statesman's  ability  was  unrecognized  in  his  own 
province  of  Pennsylvania.  Agreeing  with  Franklin  that 
the  colonists  must  work  together  if  they  were  to  work  effi- 
ciently, Shirley  allowed  no  controversy  over  boundaries  to 
interfere  with  united  Colonial  action  when  the  latter  was 
necessary,  yet  he  abandoned  no  claim  to  territory  when  he 
considered  the  rights  of  Massachusetts  or  of  the  Crown 
endangered.  In  the  formulation  of  a  policy  against  the 
French  in  America,  Shirley's  work  was  creation  not  imita- 
tion. It  was  pioneer  work  done  in  the  face  of  difficulties 
and  doubts  which  his  successors  were  not  compelled  to  meet. 
The  New  England  governor  received  meager  support  from 
London;  his  plans  had  to  be  adjusted  to  limited  means,  yet 
he  accomplished  much  for  British  supremacy  in  the  new 
world.  It  is  upon  his  honesty  of  purpose,  his  prescience 
of  the  future  of  America,  and  his  loyalty  to  Crown  and 
Colony  that  William  Shirley's  claim  to  distinction  rests, 
and  upon  them  it  rests  securely.  Dismissal  from  office  did 
not  destroy  his  loyalty  to  the  King  or  his  love  for  Massa- 
chusetts. He  made  no  effort  to  embarrass  either  Spencer 
Phips  or  Thomas  Pownall,  who  followed  him  as  governors 
at  Boston,  and  did  much,  before  returning  to  Great  Britain, 
to  aid  the  Earl  of  Loudoun,  his  ultimate  successor  in  mili- 
tary command  in  America.  In  his  letter  of  September  13, 
1756,  to  the  several  provincial  governors,  he  urges  "that 
it  will  certainly  be  right  to  strengthen  Lord  Loudoun  as 
much  as  possible."  After  reaching  England,  Shirley  was 
vindicated  from  the  unwarranted  charges  made  against 
him,  and  on  January  30,  1759,  he  was  appointed  a  heuten- 
ant  general  in  the  army.  Through  the  Duke  of  New- 
castle he  obtained  also  the  post  of  Governor  of  the  Baha- 
mas, to  which  he  was  appointed  on  July  24,  1761,  a  poor 
reward  for  his  service  in  Massachusetts,  but  affording  an  occu- 
pation preferable  to  idleness.  In  1769  Shirley  succeeded  in 
turning  this  post  over  to  his  son,  and  in  1770  he  returned  to 


INTRODUCTION 

New  England  and  settled  at  Roxbury,  Massachusetts,  where 
he  died  on  March  twenty-fourth  of  the  next  year,  in  the 
colony  whose  prosperity  he  had  done  so  much  to  advance, 
and  in  whose  welfare  he  had  been  so  deeply  interested. 

The  abundance  of  Shirley  material  available  to  the  com- 
piler has  made  it  impossible  to  print  in  full  even  that  part 
of  the  correspondence  consisting  of  letters  from  the  Massa- 
chusetts governor.  Shirley  Manuscripts,  already  published 
and  easily  accessible,  have,  with  the  exception  of  those 
necessary  to  give  an  impartial  presentation  of  their  author, 
been  confined  to  notes ;  many  have  been  omitted  or  barely 
mentioned.  A  large  amount  of  material  thus  far  unpub- 
lished has  been  treated  in  the  same  manner.  Many  let- 
ters addressed  to  the  governor  or  executive  officials  of 
other  colonies  have  been  omitted,  as  their  publication  comes 
more  properly  within  the  field  of  state  records  or  correspon- 
dence of  other  individuals  prominent  in  their  respective 
colonies. 

The  correspondence  here  printed  aims  to  give  a  clear  view 
of  William  Shirley  as  Governor  of  Massachusetts  and  Mili- 
tary Commander  in  America.  In  the  accomplishment  of 
this  purpose  some  three  hundred  and  forty  letters  and  other 
manuscripts  from  Shirley  are  printed  in  the  body  of  the 
text,  and  over  fifty  additional  papers  are  printed  or  referred 
to  in  the  accompanying  footnotes.  Many  letters  other  than 
those  from  Shirley  have  been  included  In  the  main  text, 
making  a  total  of  over  four  hundred  and  fifty  manuscripts 
here  printed.  Among  these  are  a  few  from  his  wife,  whose 
influence  with  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  did  so  much  toward 
securing  for  the  governor  his  position  at  the  head  of  the 
Massachusetts  Bay  Colony.  Frances  Shirley  was  a  woman 
of  no  mean  powers,  and  her  family  position  gave  her  access 
to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle.  A  believer  in  her  husband's 
ability,  she  Impressed  that  belief  upon  the  prime  minister, 
and  secured  an  opportunity  for  Shirley  such  as  otherwise 
he  could  hardly  have  hoped  to  obtain.  No  more  could  the 
assistance  given  Shirley  by  Sir  William  Pepperrell  nor  the 
relations    existing    between     the    Massachusetts     governor 


INTRODUCTION 

and  men  like  Sir  William  Johnson,  Benjamin  Franklin,  and 
the  Earl  of  Loudoun  be  disregarded.  To  furnish  a  true 
setting  for  the  Shirley  correspondence,  certain  letters  of  those 
national  characters  have  been  published,  but  lack  of  space 
has  limited  their  number,  as  it  has  the  letters  from  the  Duke 
of  Newcastle  and  other  government  officials  at  London. 

With  letters  from  prominent  men  have  been  included 
some  from  writers  less  distinguished.  A  noteworthy  writer 
does  not  necessarily  mean  a  letter  of  surpassing  interest, 
and  a  man  of  less  reputation  may  write  an  extremely  illumi- 
nating account  of  events  occurring  under  his  immediate 
observation.  Shirley  autographs  are  of  most  weight,  but 
occasionally  it  happens  that  what  a  man  writes  is  of  less 
importance  than  the  replies  which  his  letters  call  forth  from 
their  recipients.  The  subordinate  can  state  his  honest 
convictions  to  his  chief  and  give  a  true  account  of  existing 
difficulties  when  called  upon  by  his  superior  officer.  The 
leader  is  kept  silent  frequently  by  his  sense  of  responsi- 
bility for  each  word  or  opinion  given  or  by  fear  of  alienat- 
ing support.  From  this  point  of  view  we  realize  the  impor- 
tance of  letters  from  Shirley's  military  subordinates,  such 
as  Williams  and  Pepperrell,  Hale  and  Bradstreet,  and 
from  Colonial  governors,  such  as  Wentworth,  Sharpe,  and 
Morris.  An  added  significance  for  the  same  reason  is  at- 
tached to  Shirley's  letters  to  Robinson,  Fox,  and  their  fellow 
officials  at  London.  Together  with  the  instructions  and 
other  communications  received  from  the  Home  Government, 
these  letters  form  the  body  of  the  correspondence  here 
printed.  About  them  gather  the  more  local  letters  and  an 
effort  has  been  made  to  keep  the  local  subordinate  to  the 
national.  In  some  instances  portions  of  long  letters  have 
been  omitted,  but  in  case  of  such  as  have  been  hitherto  un- 
published this  has  been  very  rarely  done,  and  in  every  case 
it  has  been  indicated.  The  editor  has  considered  it  wiser 
to  give  the  whole  of  important  letters  even  at  the  possible 
cost  of  decreasing  the  number  included  in  the  text  rather 
than  to  risk  the  danger  of  an  incomplete  and  possibly  in- 
accurate presentation  of  the  writer's  views. 


INTRODUCTION 

The  Importance  of  this  series  of  letters  here  printed  needs 
no  emphasis.  The  significance  of  the  fifteen  years  covered 
by  Shirley's  period  of  office  is  not  to  be  lost  in  the  brilliancy 
with  which  the  Seven  Years'  War  closed.  The  encouragement 
of  a  vigorous  Colonial  spirit  was  as  valuable  to  the  empire 
in  America  as  was  the  alliance  with  Frederick  of  Prussia 
to  the  cause  of  Great  Britain  in  Europe.  As  much  as  any 
leader  of  the  time  Shirley  recognized  the  importance  of 
the  conflict  in  America  and  his  counsels  were  of  no  mean 
order.  In  1758  Governor  Pownall  of  Massachusetts  stated 
In  a  letter  to  Pitt  and  In  words  very  like  Shirley's  what 
should  be  done,  and  even  recalled  1748  and  1754  as  the  time 
when  the  forward  policy  should  have  been  agreed  to  by  the 
Crown.  Plans  very  like  the  ones  Shirley  urged  were  the 
guides  for  the  final  victory  over  the  French,  and  his  influ- 
ence cannot  be  disregarded  in  a  search  for  the  cause  of  the 
union  of  the  English  settlers  in  America  against  that  nation 
and  their  later  growth  into  one  people. 

The  manuscripts  printed  in  these  two  volumes  have  been 
secured  for  the  National  Society  of  the  Colonial  Dames 
of  America  from  the  originals  in  the  Public  Record  Office 
and  British  Museum  In  London,  from  the  collections  of  the 
Massachusetts  Historical  Society  and  the  State  Archives 
in  Boston,  from  the  Library  of  Congress  In  Washington, 
from  the  Historical  Societies  of  Connecticut,  Pennsylvania 
and  Maryland,  and  from  other  widely  separated  sources. 
Important  letters  have  been  found  In  smaller  collections,  and 
mention  should  be  made  of  the  kindness  shown  by  the 
librarian  of  the  New  York  State  Library  among  others,  but 
the  editor's  reliance  has  been  placed  mainly  on  the  records 
at  London,  Washington,  and  Boston. 

All  persons  using  this  publication  will  appreciate  the  care 
with  which  Miss  Mary  T.  Martin  of  London  and  Miss  Bea- 
trice M.  Davis  of  Washington  have  examined  the  manu- 
script archives  of  the  London  depositories  and  the  Library 
of  Congress  respectively,  and  the  accuracy  with  which  they 
have  made  copies  of  such  letters  as  were  desired.  In  be- 
half of  the  Society  the  editor  wishes  to  thank  Mr.  Worthing- 


INTRODUCTION 

ton  C.  Ford,  Editor  of  Publications  in  the  Massachusetts 
Historical  Society,  Professor  Charles  M.  Andrews  of  Yale  Uni- 
versity, and  Dr.  J.  Franklin  Jameson,  Director  of  the  Depart- 
ment of  Historical  Research  in  the  Carnegie  Institution  of 
Washington  for  help  given.  To  each  of  these  gentlemen 
the  editor  wishes  also  to  acknowledge  his  personal  debt, 
and  particularly  to  the  last-named  scholar  to  whose  sugges- 
tion and  assistance  this  publication  is  largely  due. 

Charles  Henry  Lincoln. 


xxxlv 


CORRESPONDENCE    OF   WILLIAM   SHIRLEY 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF 
WILLIAM    SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY   TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

My  Lord, 

The  Gratitude  due  to  yr  Grace  for  the  protection,  wch  yr 
Grace's  Letter  has  afforded  me  in  this  distant  part  of  the 
World ;  as  well  as  the  Justice  due  from  me  to  his  Excel- 
lency Governr  Belcher  in  acknowledging  the  Civilities,  wch 
I  have  received  from  him  on  acct  of  yr  Grace's  recommen- 
dation, will,  I  hope,  sufficiently  excuse  me  to  yr  Grace  for 
troubling  you  wth  a  Letter  from  these  parts,  where  I  am 
lately  arriv'd  wth  my  family,  and  shall  make  it  the  chief 
Business  of  my  Life  to  endeavour  to  merit  that  Notice,  wth 
which  yr  Grace  has  been  pleas'd  to  favour  me. 

I  have  had  yet  but  a  short  Acquaintance  wth  my  Country- 
men in  America ;  But  it  is  no  small  Recommendation  of 
their  good  sense  to  me,  that  they  think  it  part  of  their  Happi- 
ness, that  they  are  within  yr  Grace's  province,  and  I  have 
often  wth  much  pleasure,  since  my  arrival  among  'em, 
heard  'em  mention  that  distinguishing  part  of  yr  Grace's 
Character  that  the  Honours  &  Wealth,  wch  the  Generality  of 
first  Ministers  seek  to  obtain  by  means  of  their  publick 
Stations,  yr  Grace  brought  along  wth  you  into  the  Service  of 
yr  Country ;  in  which  service  that  you  may  long  continue  is 
not  only  the  wish  of  every  true  Englishman  in  Great  Britain, 

1  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  898,  249. 

VOL.  I  —  B  I 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

But  in  every  part  of  his  Majesty's  Dominions,  and  of  none 
more  sincerely  than  of, 

My  Lord, 
Yr  Grace's  most  Dutifull 
&  oblig'd  Humble  Servt 

W.  Shirley. 
Boston,  Deer.  6,  1731. 

P.S.     At  his  Excellency's  Desire  Mr  Belcher  his  youngest 
son  has  the  Honr  to  deliver  this  into  yr  Grace's  hands. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ' 
My  Lord, 

Governour  Belcher,  to  whom  I  am  indebted  for  much 
civility  and  friendship  upon  yr  Grace's  Recommendation 
having  inform'd  me  that  he  has  given  yr  Grace  an  Account 
of  a  Vacancy  here  by  the  Death  of  the  late  Judge  of  the 
Admiralty ;  and  that  I  have  refus'd  his  Nomination  to  it ;  I 
take  the  Liberty,  least  I  should  seem  not  to  have  made  a 
right  use  of  that  favour  which  yr  Grace's  Countenance  and 
Goodness  have  procur'd  for  me  more  than  any  Merit  of  my 
own ;  to  trouble  yr  Grace  wth  a  short  acct  of  the  Circum- 
stances of  that  post. 

.  The  Jurisdiction  of  it  is  at  present  entirely  unsettled  by 
the  Constant  prohibitions  of  the  provincial  Judges  in  all 
Cases  concerning  Breaches  of  Trade,  tho'  never  so  plainly 
giv'n  by  Act  of  Parliamt  to  be  try'd  by  the  Court  of  Ad- 
miralty, such  prohibitions  being  popular  things,  and  all 
Officers  here  being  Creatures  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives, tho'  naturally  by  their  Office  and  Relation  to  the 
Crown  they  should  exert  themselves  in  favour  of  the  pre- 
rogative and  Revenue,  because  the  House  in  effect  pays 
'em,  and  marks  every  one  who  is  in  the  least  suspected  to 
be  not  mere  slaves  of  theirs.    In  the  next  place  there  is  at 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  J2688,  J/.  A  transcript  is  in 
the  Library  of  Congress. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

present  an  Attempt  to  destroy  the  Court  totally  by  sinking 
the  perquisites  and  fees  of  the  Judge  from  abt  thirty  pounds 
a  year  Sterl  to  fifteen,  and  accordingly  at  the  Instigation  of 
a  Gentleman,  whose  name  I  believe  yr  Grace  is  no  stranger 
to,  Dr.  Cook  of  Boston,  to  please  the  populace,  prosecutions 
Civil,  and  Criminal  were  commenc'd  agt  the  late  worthy 
Judge,  who  before  his  Death  had  spent  two  hundred  pounds 
New  England  Currency  in  the  Defence  of  himself  and  his 
Officers,  and  had  two  Cases  sent  home  by  way  of  Complaint, 
(an  Appeal  being  deny'd  him)  to  his  Majesty  in  Council 
just  before  his  Death,  which  are  not  yet  determin'd  ;  and  all 
this  persecution  of  him  carry'd  on  notwithstanding  the 
known  Opinion  of  the  Judges  of  our  Superior  Court,  who 
had  not  courage  to  take  the  Judgmt  of  the  point  of  Law 
upon  themselves,  as  they  were  bound  to  do  by  their  Oaths, 
but  rather  chose  to  deny  him  the  Common  Justice  of  con- 
sidering his  plea,  because  he  would  not  submit  to  give  such 
a  plea  as  would  bring  it  to  the  Examination  of  a  Jury.  So 
that  to  have  accepted  this  post  in  it's  present  situation,  would 
have  reduc'd  me  to  the  hard  Choice  of  sacrificing  the  Court 
to  a  mean  popularity,  or  making  a  sacrifice  of  myself  in  the 
defence  of  it ;  the  first  neither  honourable  nor  honest,  and 
the  last  not  prudent.^ 

But  if  there  should  be  any  prospect  of  these  Grievances 
being  redress'd  any  way  by  their  Lordships  of  the  Admiralty, 
and  a  support  provided  for  the  Judge  in  the  discharge  of 
his  Duty ;  No  one  would,  my  Lord,  be  more  sensible  or 
Ambitious  of  the  Honour  of  such  a  post ;  which  would  yet 
not  be  too  late,  should  the  sum  be  so  alter'd,  their  Lordships 
not  having  yet  dispos'd  of  it;  so  tho'  I  refus'd  the  Govr's. 
Nomination,  I  will  with  the  utmost  resignation  submit  to  yr 
Grace's  Determination  for  me  in  this  matter.  .  .  . 

^  Although  Shirley  was  a  popular  official  in  America,  he  did  not 
gain  his  popularity  by  a  sacrifice  of  the  rights  of  the  Crown  or  the 
prerogatives  of  its  representatives  in  America.  He  was  ever  a 
believer  in  a  strong  central  government,  considering  it  a  necessity 
in  the  conditions  existing  in  America  during  the  struggle  between 
the  Colonists  and  the  French. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

I  should  not  have  troubled  yr  Grace  wth  this  Imperti- 
nent account  of  a  little  Office,  had  it  not  been  for  his  Ex- 
cellency's letter  to  yr  Grace  concerning  my  refusal  of  it ; 
which  made  me  jealous  even  of  a  bare  possibility  of  being 
thought  foolishly  neglectfull  of  making  use  of  an  Opportu- 
nity for  my  own  Interest,  wch  yr  Grace's  Goodness  had 
procur'd  for  me. 

We  have  just  receiv'd  Advice  by  Sr.  John  Randal,  that  the 
House  of  Commons  has  treated  Dr.  Cook's  late  Memorial 
to  'em  agt  his  Majesty's  Instruction  to  his  Govr  concern- 
ing the  Supply  of  the  Treasury,  with  due  resentmt  and  In- 
dignation, wch  sounds  like  a  Thunderclap  in  the  Ears  of  his 
Mob  and  the  House  of  Representatives. 

His  Excellency  abt  a  fortnight  ago  try'd  his  strength 
wth  him  in  Council,  and  turn'd  him  out  from  being  Judge 
of  the  Court  of  Common  pleas. 

I  am,  my  Lord,  in  all  Duty  and  Gratitude 
Yr   Grace's    most   Obedt   Humble 
Servt. 


W.  Shirley. 


Boston  N.  England  July  i.  1733 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY  TO  THE    DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  1 

Boston,  New  England,  Augt.  4,  1733. 
My  Lord, 

Colonel  Dunbarr  having  wrote  to  Sir  Robert  Walpole, 
desiring  his  Majesty's  leave  to  sell  two  of  his  Commissions, 
one  of  Surveyor  Genl.  of  his  Majesty's  Woods  in  North 
America,  and  the  other  of  Surveyor  of  his  Lands  in  Nova 
Scotia,  and  in  the  mean  time  having  sent  a  Genl.  power  to 
Mr.  Silas  Hooper  a  Mercht.  in  London  to  sollicit  that  Affair 
and  to  agree  with  any  person  at  home  for  the  Sale  of  the 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32688,  44.  A  transcript  is  in  the 
Library  of  Congress,  and  a  second  copy  is  in  Additional  Manu- 
script J2688,  42. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Commissions,  in  case  he  can  obtain  leave  to  sell,  upon  what 
Terms  he  can  get ;  wch  I  have  certain  knowledge  of,  having 
my  self  drawn  the  power  to  Mr.  Hooper  by  the  Colonel's 
direction,  and  had  a  particular  Account  of  his  Letter  to  Sir 
Robert  from  a  Gentleman  who  read  it  and  forwarded  it  to 
England ;  I  once  more  take  the  liberty  of  troubling  your 
Grace  with  a  petition,  begging  the  favour  that  I  may  have  such 
preference  in  the  purchase,  if  the  Colonel  has  leave  to  sell, 
as  yr  Grace's  Goodness  shall  think  proper  to  give  me. 

Both  the  Commissions  are  worth  400  lb  per  Ann,  the 
Salary  of  each  being  200  lb ;  And  I  would  propose  to  pay  the 
Colonel's  Agent  in  England  600  lb  upon  his  resignation,  in 
case  yr  Grace  should  bestow  on  me  the  favour  of  being  his 
Successor.  And  as  the  holding  these  posts  seems  precari- 
ous, one  Mr.  Burniston  the  Colonel's  immediate  predecessor 
in  the  survey  of  the  Woods  having  been  superseded  by  the 
Colonel,  and  another  person  before  by  Mr.  Burniston  within 
a  few  Years  ;  I  scarcely  think  that  any  prudent  person  would 
venture  to  give  above  800  lb  for  'em,  even  if  they  were  posts 
at  home ;  But  as  I  may  be  mistaken,  I  would  submit  to  any 
Terms,  that  shall  be  thought  proper  for  me  to  take  'em  upon ; 
One  of  my  Clients  here  having  been  so  good  as  to  offer  Vol- 
untarily to  furnish  me  wth  the  Money  for  that  purpose. 

If  thro'  yr  Grace's  Goodness  I  succeed  the  Colonel,  I 
shall  endeavour  to  establish  my  self  in  the  posts  by  a  faith- 
full  Discharge  of  my  particular  Duty  in  the  Execution  of  my 
Commissions,  and  a  Distinguish'd  Zeal  in  his  Majesty's 
Service  in  all  other  respects  to  the  utmost  of  my  power ; 
And  should  I  be  so  happy  as  to  be  continu'd  in  'em  for 
some  Years,  the  salary  from  England,  with  frugal  Managemt, 
would  restore  my  Family,  and  for  ever  command  my 
Gratitude  to  yr  Grace  for  their  Happiness. 

In  hopes  that  this  may  be  an  happy  Crisis  of  my  Affairs  by 

yielding  a  proper  Opportunity  for  yr  Grace's  Goodness  to 

distinguish  me,  I  am 

My  Lord 

Yr  Grace's  most  Devoted,  and  Oblig'd 

Humble  Servant       ,,7.   ^ 

W.  Shirley. 

5 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

P.S.  If  the  Colonel  should  not  obtain  leave  to  sell,  and 
should  resign ;  I  would  beg  yr  Grace's  favour  for  both  or 
one  of  the  Commissions. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE    DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE ' 

Boston,  N.  England,  Deer.  22, 1736. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

His  Majesty's  Woods  in  the  Province  of  New  Hampshire 
and  the  Massachusett's  bay  in  New  England  being  one  of  the 
most  valuable  productions  of  the  plantations  in  North 
America  to  the  Crown  &  esteem'd  at  home  of  such  Conse- 
quence to  the  Royal  Navy  that  the  parliamt  has  made  several 
penal  Laws  for  the  preservation  of  'em ;  I  thought  the 
inclos'd  case,  wch  is  stated  for  the  Attorney  &  Sollicitor  Genl's 
Opinions  might  deserve  yr  Grace's  Notice,  as  the  care  of 
these  Woods  is  within  yr  Grace's  province  ;  &  that  it  was  my 
Duty  to  make  this  Representation  to  yr  Grace  concerning 
'em. 

The  Tract  of  Land  in  Question,  wch  is  120  miles  square, 
contains  the  largest  &  most  valuable  part  of  all  the  King's 
Woods  fit  for  the  use  of  the  Royal  Navy ;  and  to  my  cer- 
tain Knowledge  the  Massachusett's  Governmt  are  deter- 
min'd  to  contest  the  Crown's  right  to  'em,  &  for  that  pur- 
pose have  maintained  &  supported  at  the  Province  Charge, 
the  Defence  agt  the  two  Appeals  lately  brought  before  his 
Majesty  in  Council  in  the  two  Actions  mention'd  in  the 
Inclos'd  Case,  &  sent  directions  to  the  Agent  of  their  Prov- 
ince in  England  to  take  care  of  it. 

The  suppos'd  Defect  in  the  Crown's  right  to  the  Trees 
set  forth  in  the  case,  if  it  should  be  thought  so  by  the  At- 
torney and  Sollicitor  Genl,  may  at  present  be  easily  cur'd 
by  purchasing  in  one  Gentleman's  right  in  this  province, 
which  may  now  be  done  upon  reasonable  Terms  before  the 
province  is  appriz'd  of  the  Defect ;   but  if  they  should  come 

1  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  899,  185. 
6 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

to  the  Knowledge  of  it,  they  would  soon  forestall  the  Crown 
in  the  purchase  of  that  right,  or  at  least  render  it  very  diffi- 
cult to  be  obtain'd ;  And  should  the  people  of  the  Province 
get  but  the  Shadow  of  a  Title  to  these  Trees  the  Crown's 
claim  to  'em,  wch  now  labours  with  Difficulties,  tho  guarded 
with  two  penal  Acts  of  Parliamt,  would  be  so  weaken'd 
that  I  don't  think  Workmen  would  be  found  in  the  province, 
who  would  venture  to  cut  any  for  the  service  of  the  Crown. 

Another  Consequence,  My  Lord,  which  would  attend  the 
purchase  of  this  right,  if  it  is  a  good  one,  is  this :  It 
would  then  be  in  the  Power  of  the  Crown  to  unite  this  Tract 
of  Land,  wch  of  itself  is  a  considerable  one,  being  the  best 
for  Soil  &  Trees  (except  the  other  Eastern  parts  of  the  Prov- 
ince, wch  lie  contiguous  to  it)  together  wth  those  other 
Eastern  parts  to  his  Majesty's  Province  of  New  Hamp- 
shire, by  wch  it  is  bounded  on  the  other  side,  &  out  of  'em 
all  to  form  the  best  province  in  North  America  wch  would 
be  of  a  larger  extent  than  England,  &  the  chief,  if  not  only 
Magazine  of  Naval  Stores  in  New  England,  has  the  best 
Harbours  &  Bays  in  the  King's  Dominions,  and  is  more  in 
request  wth  new  Settlers  of  all  Nations  at  this  time  than  any 
part  of  New  England ;  Whereas  at  present  New  Hamp- 
shire wch  is  the  only  King's  Province  (as  it  is  term'd  here) 
in  New  England,  &  is  surrounded  with  three  Charter  Prov- 
inces, all  thriving  &  flourishing,  is  a  weakly,  declining  Col- 
ony situated  in  the  bosom  of  the  Massachusett's  Province 
between  the  Massachusett's  Old  bounds,  &  this  Tract  of 
Land,  &  so  poor  as  not  to  be  able  to  support  a  governour 
without  being  tacked  to  the  Governmt  of  the  Massachu- 
sett's bay,  &  by  that  means  subjected  to  great  Inconven- 
iences &  troublesome  Dispute,  between  the  Chief  Governour 
&  Lieutent  Governour. 

I  should  not  have  ventur'd  to  launch  out  so  far  to  yr 
Grace  but  that  the  Crown  abt  six  years  ago  sent  Col.  Dun- 
barr  to  take  possession  of  &  settle  these  very  Eastern  parts 
wch  I  am  now  writing  abt ;  &  the  Colonel  had  actually 
begun  settlemts  there  in  behalf  of  the  Crown,  &  was  making 
a  progress  in  'em,  till  some  private  persons  in  conjunction 

7 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

with  the  Massachusett's  Governmt  petition'd  his  Majesty  to 
recall  his  Instructions  to  Col.  Dunbarr,  &  to  order  him  to  quit 
his  possession,  upon  their  claiming  title  to  that  tract  under 
former  grants  of  the  Crown,  wch  was  accordingly  allow'd. 

But  the  Massachusett's  Governmt  is  now  in  a  Disposi- 
tion to  restore  those  lands  to  the  Crown,  &  have  absolutely 
refus'd  to  protect  the  Settlers  there  for  reasons,  wch  it 
would  be  too  tedious  to  trouble  yr  Grace  with  here.  And 
I  am  satisfy'd  that  the  uniting  &  erecting  the  Province  of 
New  Hampshire,  the  late  Province  of  Maine,  &  the  other 
Eastern  parts  of  New  England  (if  Mr  Usher  mention'd 
in  the  inclos'd  case  has  any  title  to  the  Province  of  Maine) 
into  one  province  in  such  manner  as  the  Crown  should  please, 
if  properly  manag'd  &  conducted,  might  be  effected  with- 
out any  trouble  to  the  Ministry,  &  even  with  the  good  liking 
of  the  people  here. 

But  if  yr'Grace  should  be  of  Opinion  that  this  is  not  worth 
the  Crown's  Notice ;  Yet  the  Immediate  preservation  of 
the  Crown's  right  to  much  the  greatest  part  of  the  Royal 
Woods  in  America  fit  for  the  Service  of  the  Navy,  will  I 
hope  excuse  to  yr  Grace  the  trouble,  I  have  here  given  you. 

And  if  it  should  be  thought  proper  to  purchase  in  Mr 
Usher's  right ;   yr  Grace  might  depend  upon  the  most  faith- 
full  service  in  this,  or  any  other  respect  from 
My  Lord 

Yr  Grace's  most  Dutifull 
and  Oblig'd  Humble  Servt 

Wm  Shirley. 


FRANCES    SHIRLEY   TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ' 
My  Lord  Duke, 

I  have  often  attempted  having  the  Honour  of  Wateing  on 
your  Grace,  but  have  met  with  so  many  Repulses  at  the  Door 
that  I  am  Oblig'd  to  take  this  way  of  addressing  my  Selfe  to  you. 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32690,  261.  A  transcript  is  in 
the  Library  of  Congress. 

8 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Mr.  Pelham  tells  me  he  has  deliver'd  to  your  Grace 
the  Petition,  wherein  Mr.  Shirley  begs  he  may  have  a 
Sallary  for  the  Place  of  Advocate  General,^  and  that  your 
Grace  is  so  good  as  to  Say  you  will  do  wt  you  can  in  that 
Affair.  I  am  told  if  I  do  Succeed,  it  will  be  refir'd  to  the 
Board  of  Admiralty,  or  the  Board  of  Trade ;  I  hope  your 
Grace  will  be  So  good  as  to  Send  it  to  the  latter,  they 
being  well  Inform'd  of  the  Affair,  and  much  dispos'd  to 
assist  me  in  it.  I  am  Inform'd  your  Grace  has  often  been 
Inclin'd  to  do  Somthing  for  Mr.  Shirley,  wch  has  given  me 
the  Courage  to  trouble  your  Grace  wth  this  letter.  I  am 
Sencible  an  Husbands  Charecter  comes  very  Improperly 
from  a  Wife,  but  I  must  beg  leave  to  Say,  he  is  a  Man  of 
great  Honour  and  Honisty,  and  I  dare  say  will  never  dis- 
credit your  Graces  Choice,  whatever  Imployment  you  be- 
stow on  him,  from  his  own  capasity  and  the  General  Esteem 
the  people  have  for  him,  he  may  be  of  great  Service  to  the 
Crown,  and  I  am  Sure  will  Imploy  his  utmost  Ability  and 
Industry  in  return  for  any  Favours  bestow'd  on  him,  and  I 
may  venture  to  say  the  King  wants  Such  men  in  America. 

Mr.  Shirley  My  Lord  Duke,  is  Descended  from  an  An- 

^  The  petition  here  mentioned  is  probably  contained  in  Shirley's 
letter  of  July  19,  1736,  to  Newcastle  (C.  O.  5,  899,  p.  171),  in  which, 
with  the  suggestion  of  a  salary,  Shirley  forwarded  the  draft  of  a 
measure  for  the  preservation  of  the  King's  Woods.  See  also  the 
paper  submitted  by  Shirley,  as  Advocate  General,  to  the  Admiralty 
(Admiralty  Section,  Insular  Letters  3817),  showing  the  case  against 
Nathaniel  Oilman  of  Exeter,  N.H.,  regarding  the  cutting  of  one 
white  pine  tree.  Another  illustration  of  Shirley's  activity  in  behalf 
of  the  Crown's  interests  in  the  forests  of  America  is  his  notice  to 
Newcastle,  Dec.  22,  1736  (C.  O.  5,  899,  p.  185),  that  the  Massachu- 
setts Government  intended  to  contest  the  Crown's  right  to  woods 
fit  for  use  in  the  navy.  Upon  such  vigilance  for  the  interests 
of  the  navy  he  might  well  base  his  request  for  the  post  of  Naval 
Officer,  Jan.  2,  1737-8.  The  son-in-law  of  Governor  Belcher  had 
already  requested  the  office  from  Sir  Robert  Walpole  (C.  O.  5, 
899,  p.  239),  but  the  feeling  between  Belcher  and  the  Shirleys  was 
not  such  as  to  prevent  the  latter  from  seeking  the  place  despite  Mr. 
Lyde's  earlier  effort.  See  also  Mrs.  Shirley  to  the  Duke  of  New- 
castle, July  19,  1738,  post,  p.  II. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

cient  and  good  Famely  in   Sussex,  your  Graces  favourite 
County,  his  Ancestors  were  not  only  Neighbours  but  had 
the  Honour  of  an  Intimacy  and  Friendship  wth  your  Graces 
Ancestors,   and    I   am   in   great  hopes    (from   your  Graces 
General   Charecter  of  goodness,  compassion  and  readiness 
to  make  your  great  Station  a  blessing  to  those  below  you) 
that  you  will  not  lett  Mr,  Shirley  and  Nine  Children  Sink 
in  a  Foreign  Country.     My  last  letters  from  America  In- 
form me  that  Mr.  Clark  Levtt :   Governor  of  New  York,  is 
in  great  hopes  of  the  Government  of  that  place  and  So,  he 
must  quit  his  Secretarys  Post,  wch  Mr.  Shirley  wou'd  be 
very  glad  to  leave  Boston  for.     I  beg  pardon  for  presume- 
ing  to  take  up  So  much  of  your  Graces  time,  and  hope  you 
will  Impute  it  to  wt  was  the  Real  Cause,  a  Necessity  of 
troubleing  your  Grace,  or  letting  my  Family  Sink  in  Silence. 
I  am  my  Lord  Duke  wth  the  greatest 
Duty  and  Respect  your  Graces 
Most    Obedient    and    Most 
Humble  Servant 
March  the  2d,  1736.  Fra.  Shirley.* 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

Boston,  New  Engld.  Jany.  11,  1737. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

1  am  sensible  how  very  lately  I  trespass'd  upon  yr  Grace 
in  this  way;  But  not  knowing  how  proper  the  request  of 

^  Frances  Shirley  was  the  first  wife  of  William  Shirley  and  the 
daughter  of  Francis  Barker  for  whom  she  was  named.  She  was 
born  in  England,  and  by  reason  of  her  family  had  access  to  and  in- 
fluence with  the  Duke  of  Newcastle.  Fond  of  politics,  and  of  more 
than  usual  ability  in  political  intrigue,  she  was  of  much  aid  to  her 
husband  in  his  several  promotions.  His  greatest  success  in  war  — 
the  capture  of  Louisbourg  —  was  secured  before  her  death,  which 
occurred  in  September,  1746.     See  prefatory  note,  ante,  p.  xxxi. 

2  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32691,  15.  A  transcript  is  in 
the  Library  of  Congress.  Here  and  in  similar  cases  the  old  style 
dating  is  used. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

my  last  letter  might  be,^  and  finding  by  the  publick  Prints 
from  Virginia  that  Mr  Clayton  the  late  Attorney  Genl 
there,  who  is  appointed  by  Commission  from  home,  dy'd 
on  the  1 8th  of  last  November,  I  venture  to  trespass  upon 
yr  Grace  once  more  to  inform  yr  Grace  of  this  Vacancy, 
and  beg  the  favour  that  I  may  be  appointed  to  succeed  Mr. 
Clayton,  wch  would  be  a  very  Advantageous  removal  for  me. 
After  having  been  so  troublesome,  I  dare  not  detain  yr 
Grace  a  Momt  longer  than  with  the  utmost  sense  of  Grati- 
tude and  Duty  to  yr  Grace  to  subscribe  myself 
My  Lord 

Yr  Grace's  most  Devoted  and 
Obedt.  Humble  Servt. 

Wm.  Shirley. 


FRANCES   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

My  Lord  Duke, 

I  troubl'd  your  Grace  some  time  agoe  wth  a  letter  in  re- 
lation to  the  Goverment  of  New  England.  If  your  Grace  is 
so  good  as  to  design  that  for  Mr.  Shirley  when  it  becomes 
Vacant  I  shou'd  be  very  glad  to  wate  some  time  for  it  but 
if  neither  that  nor  any  other  good  thing  is  in  View  I  beg 
leave  to  Mention  a  Post  that  I  Spoke  of  the  first  time  I  had 
the  Honour  of  seeing  your  Grace.  It  is  the  Naval  Officer 
of  New  England  wch  I  am  Inform'd  Mr.  Loyd,^   Son  in 

^  His  application  for  the  post  of  Naval  Officer  of  Massachusetts, 
ante,  p.  9,  note. 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32691 ,  2^4.  A  transcript  is  in  the 
Library  of  Congress.     See  Newcastle's  reply  of  July  23,  following. 

'  The  person  referred  to  is  Byfield  Lyde.  He  was  the  grand- 
son of  Judge  Nathaniel  Byfield  and  married  the  only  daughter  of 
Jonathan  Belcher.  Mr.  Lyde  was  graduated  from  Harvard  College 
in  1723,  and  was  at  this  time  Governor  Belcher's  candidate  for  the 
position  of  Naval  Officer  of  New  England.  The  Governor  sought 
to  obtain  the  office  through  Sir  Robert  Walpole,  but  was  opposed 
by  Mrs.  Shirley,  to  whom  he  had  given  the  name  '"'Mrs.  Gypsy." 
6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.,  Vols.  VII  and  X. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Law  to  Governor  Belcher  Is  now  Soliciting  your  Grace  for. 
The  Post  is  worth  about  200  lb.  a  year  Sterling  and  when  a 
Deputy  is  paid  there  will  remain  about  140  lb.  I  am  thor- 
oughly perswaded  your  Grace  is  well  Inclin'd  to  do  som- 
thing  for  us  and  that  if  nothing  better  is  in  View  your  Grace 
will  be  so  good  as  to  bestow  this  upon  Mr.  Shirley 
I  am  my  Lord  Duke  your 

Graces  Most  Oblig'd  Most 

Obedient  and  Most  Humble 
Servant 
July  the  19th,  1738  Fra.  Shirley. 

DUKE  OF   NEWCASTLE   TO  FRANCES  SHIRLEY  ^ 

Claremont,  July  23d,  1738. 
Madam, 

I  am  very  sincere,  in  assuring  You  of  My  Readiness  to 
serve  Mr.  Shirley,  on  any  proper  Occasion.  I  don't  at  all 
know,  that  the  Government  of  New  England  is  like  to  be 
vacant,  or  that  the  Place  of  Naval  Officer  of  New  England 
is  vacant ;  so  that  I  can  say  Nothing  to  either  of  those  things. 
If  the  Chief  Justice  of  New  York  should  be  removed,  I  shall 
not  fail  to  recommend  Mr.  Shirley,  to  succeed  to  that  Post ; 
and  will  repeat  my  Sollicitations  to  Sr.  Robert  Walpole, 
for  the  Employment,  that  You  formerly  mention'd  to  Me, 
which  is  in  the  Gift  of  the  Treasury. 
I  am  Madam 

Yr  Most  Obedt.  Humble  Servt. 
Mrs.   Shirley.  Holles  Newcastle.^ 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  326QI,  262.  A  transcript  is 
in  the  Library  of  Congress. 

^  Thomas  Pelham-Holles,  Duke  of  Newcastle,  was  born  in  1693, 
and  died  in  1768.  During  his  career  as  minister  to  the  king,  he 
rose  as  high  as  First  Lord  of  the  Treasury  (1754),  but  during  the 
period  with  which  we  are  most  concerned  in  these  volumes,  he  was 
Secretary  of  State  for  the  Home  Department  in  ministries  headed 
by  Sir  Robert  Walpole,  Lord  Wilmington,  and  Henry  Pelham.  This 
department  included  the  charge  of  the  Colonies. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY    TO    THE    DUKE    OF 
NEWCASTLE ' 

Boston,  N.  E.  March  3,  1738. 
My  Lord  Duke. 

This  Morning  I  had  the  honour  of  yr  Grace's  Commands 
relating  to  Sir  Thomas  Prendergast's  Demand  agt  Mr. 
Auchmuty,  wch  I  hope,  I  have  already  finish'd  to  Sir 
Thomas's  satisfaction. 


And  now  I  must  intreat  yr  Grace  to  permit  me  to  ex- 
press the  great  Concern,  I  am  under,  at  receiving  this  Morn- 
ing an  acct  of  yr  Grace's  having  been  troubled  wth  an 
Impertinent  Letter  sign'd  J.  Bowden,^  containing  Complts. 
agt  Govr  Belcher,  and  desiring  that  I  might  be  put  into  his 
post ;  and  to  assure  yr  Grace  that  it  is  Counterfeit.  The 
person,  whose  name  is  borrow'd  to  sign  this  Letter  with,  is 
a  Merchant  of  the  largest  Estate  in  this  province,  a  French- 
man by  birth,  who  does  not  trouble  his  head  abt  anything 
that  relates  to  the  Governmt,  is  upon  good  Terms  with 
Govr.  Belcher,  and  has  very  little  acquaintance  with  me ; 
and  to  bring  it  to  the  Test  whether  the  name  set  to  the  Let- 
ter is  of  his  handwriting,  as  he  is  one  of  the  Signers  of  our 
Merchants  publick  bills,  I  have  sent  Mrs.   Shirley  one  of 

^  B.  M.,  Jdditional  Manuscript  J26q2,  2j.  A  transcript  is  in  the 
Library  of  Congress.  Substantially  the  same  letter  is  in  C.  O.  5, 
899,  263.  See  also  an  unsigned  letter  of  about  eighty  words  re- 
lating to  Prendergast's  demands,  ibid.  p.  260.  Robert  Auchmuty 
was  Judge  of  the  Court  of  Admiralty  and  disliked  by  Belcher. 

^  The  letter  to  which  Shirley  refers  is  in  C.  O.  5,  899,  p.  250, 
and  the  person  said  to  have  written  the  letter  was  James  Bowdoin 
the  merchant,  father  of  the  later  Governor  Bowdoin.  James 
Bowdoin  was,  as  Shirley  says,  born  in  France.  He  was  the  son  of 
Pierre  Baudouin,  a  Huguenot  refugee  from  near  La  Rochelle,  born 
in  1676,  and  died  in  Boston,  Sept.  8,  1747.  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll. 
10,  364. 

13 


CORRESPONDENCE  OP  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

'em  to  make  use  of  for  a  Comparison  of  his  handwriting  with 
the  Letter.  I  am  also  perswaded  that  this  Letter  did  not 
come  from  any  friend  of  mine,  but  from  some  person,  who 
design'd  to  discredit  me  in  yr  Grace's  Opinion ;  For  if  the 
Writer  of  it  had  really  design'd  to  serve  me,  and  prejudice 
Govr.  Belcher,  he  would,  I  doubt  not,  have  consulted  me  as 
to  the  propriety  of  framing  it,  and  sending  it.  And  I  hope 
I  am  not  fall'n  so  low  in  yr  Grace's  Opinion  as  that  yr  Grace 
can  think  me  Guilty  of  offering  so  very  weak,  and  silly  an 
Abuse  to  yr  Grace's  Goodness  as  to  encourage  so  pitifull 
a  Contrivance.  Besides,  when  this  was  wrote,  I  was  an 
utter  Stranger  to  any  Application  of  my  friends  for  this 
Governmt ;  And  there  is  no  person  in  this  province,  who 
could  reasonably  think  I  had  any  such  View.  There  is 
indeed  one  Gentleman  in  the  province,  whose  Jealousy 
I  can't  forbear  mistrusting  in  this  Aifair,  and  who,  I  know, 
would  now  be  glad  by  any  Contrivance  to  hurt  me  in  yr 
Grace's  Opinion.  It  may  seem  hard  and  groundless  to 
impute  so  mean  and  improbable  an  Artifice  to  a  Gentleman 
in  the  highest  Station  among  us.  But  as  I  am  thoroughly 
acquainted  wth  his  politicks,  and  am  knowing  to  other  In- 
stances of  the  like  kind  of  Treachery  from  him  towards  an- 
other Gentleman  now  in  England  (one  of  which  is  now  lying 
before  the  Board  of  Trade)  I  dare  almost  risque  my  Credit 
upon  the  Truth  of  my  suspicion. 

1  Having  thus  broke  in  upon  yr  Grace,  I  must  further 
beg  leave  just  to  mention  my  uneasiness  at  Mr.  Waldo's  ^ 
indiscretions  in  his  Application  to  yr  Grace  in  my  favour : 
The  Account  wch  he  has  sent  me,  of  his  intruding  upon  yr 
Grace  in  Sussex,  and  his  manner  of  solliciting  for  me  since, 
has  given  me  no  small  pain.  It  is  what  I  was  much  sur- 
priz'd  at,  and  if  I  had  been  consulted  in  it,  should  never 
have  consented  to.  I  am  well  satisfy'd  of  Mr.  Waldo's 
friendship  for  me,  and  hold  myself  much  oblig'd  to  him  for 

^  Samuel  Waldo  was  a  wealthy  merchant  and  second  In  com- 
mand at  Loulsbourg  in  1745.  He  was  born  in  Boston  in  1696 
and  acquired  large  land  holdings  in  the  district  of  Maine,  where 
he  died  in  May,  1759. 

14 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

his  good  intentions ;  but  I  can  appeal  to  my  own  Letters  to 
Mrs.  Shirley,^  and  Mr.  Waldo's  letters  to  me  for  a  full  proof, 
that  he  had  no  Commission  from  me  to  be  so  troublesome 
to  your  Grace. 

It  is  impossible  for  me  fully  to  express  here  the  deep 
sense  I  have  of  yr  Grace's  late  Goodness  to  me  in  the  whole 
Course  of  my  Application  to  his  Majesty  for  annexing  a 
Salary  to  my  post  of  Advocate  Genl,  and  also  in  nominating 
me  for  Chief  Justice  of  New  York,^  and  there  is  nothing  I 
more  ardently  wish  for  than  to  have  an  opportunity  of 
giving  a  proof  of  my  Duty  and  Gratitude  to  yr  Grace,  and 
with  what  an  unfeign'd  Zeal  and  Attachmt  I  am 
My  Lord, 

Yr  Grace's  most  Oblig'd  and 

Devoted  Humble  Servt 

Wm.  Shirley. 


FRANCES   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  3 

My  Lord  Duke 

Mr.  Western  has  Inform'd  me  of  a  late  Conversation 
that  he  has  had  wth  your  Grace  by  wch  I  find  that  it  is  your 
Opinion  that  it  is  not  proper  at  this  time  to  make  an  Altera- 
tion in  the  Massachusits  Govert.  and  that  therefore  your 
Grace  is  so  good  to  Advise  Mr.  Shirley  to  Accept  of  the 
Govert.  of  New  Hampshire^  together  with  the  Post  Office 

^  It  is  interesting  to  read  in  the  light  of  this  statement  Mrs. 
Shirley's  letter  to  Newcastle  of  March  13,  1739-40,  following. 
By  that  time  certainly  the  position  of  Governor  of  Massachusetts 
would  have  been  gratefully  received. 

2  See  Newcastle  to  Frances  Shirley,  July  23,  1738,  ante,  p. 12. 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  326gj,  I2j.  A  transcript  is  in 
the  Library  of  Congress. 

*  During  1739  there  had  been  great  discontent  with  Governor 
Belcher  shown  throughout  New  Hampshire,  and  a  movement  for 
a   government  distinct  from   that  of  Massachusetts   had   gained 

IS 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

wch  I  am  Inform'd  are  very  Consistant  together.  This 
Advice  I  am  sure  Mr.  Shirley  is  very  ready  to  take  wth  the 
greatest  Thankfullness  and  I  will  venture  to  say  will  in  that 
Post  Indeavour  to  Convince  your  Grace  that  he  is  not  un- 
deserving of  the  other  whenever  your  Grace  sees  proper 
to  make  a  removal.  By  the  best  Enquiry  I  can  make  I  find 
that  two  hundred  a  year  is  the  utmost  that  the  People  of 
N  Hampshire  can  allow  a  governour.  I  doubt  not  therefore 
but  the  Ministry  will  make  such  an  additional  allowance  as 
will  be  Necessary  for  the  Support  of  a  governor  appointed 
by  his  Majesty  in  the  settling  of  wch  I  flatter  myself  I  shall 
have  your  Graces  Assistance,  wch,  if  I  have,  I  doubt  not 
but  these  two  places  will  afford  us  a  Comfortable  Subsist- 
ance  till  your  Grace  shall  see  proper  to  give  us  further  In- 
stances of  your  goodness  to  us.  And  now  my  Lord  Duke 
I  most  Humbly  beg  pardon  for  having  given  so  much  trouble 
about  the  Massachusits  Governor  wch  I  asure  your  Grace 
I  had  not  so  strongly  solicited  had  I  not  had  the  strongest 
reasons  given  me  to  think  that  he  was  very  unworthy  of 
that  post,  I  have  nothing  further  to  trouble  your  Grace 
wth  at  present  but  to  beg  the  favour  of  your  Grace  by  this 
propos'd  kindness  to  take  the  first  Opportunity  of  deliver- 
ing Mr.  Shirley  from  the  III  treatment  that  he  now  meets 


much  headway.  The  Lords  Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Planta- 
tions, as  a  result  of  a  memorial  supported  by  John  Thomlinson, 
Joseph  Gulston,  Navy  Agent  at  the  time,  and  others,  reported  to 
the  Privy  Council  (Aug.  lo,  1739)  "that  it  would  be  for  His 
Majesty's  Service  and  the  Good  of  the  Colony  of  New  Hampshire 
that  it  should  have  a  distinct  Governor."  Others  wished  to  be 
annexed  to  Massachusetts,  and  on  Oct.  17  the  Commissioners  re- 
considered their  former  report  and  urged  that  the  matter  be  again 
referred  to  the  New  Hampshire  Assembly  and  that  New  Hamp- 
shire be  not  given  a  distinct  government  until  it  was  known  what 
provision  would  be  made  for  a  separate  governor.  The  Com- 
missioners reported  against  annexation  to  Massachusetts  and  the 
Privy  Council  upheld  them.  The  result  was  the  appointment 
of  Governor  Benning  Wentworth,  who  came  to  New  Hampshire 
Dec.  13,  1741.  Belknap,  "History  of  New  Hampshire,'*!,  255; 
N.  H.   Prov.  Papers,  5,  87. 

16 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

with  from  the  Governors  anger.     I  am  my  Lord  Duke  with 
the  greatest  Gratitude  your  graces 

Most  Obedient  and  Most 

ObHg'd  Humble   Servant 

F.  Shirley. 
March  the  13th,  1740. 


DUKE   OF  NEWCASTLE  TO  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY » 

Whitehall,  April  5th,  1740. 
Mr.  Shirley. 
(at  Boston.) 
Sir, 

This  Letter  will  be  transmitted  to  You  by  Colo.  Blake- 
ney,2  who  is  charged  with  His  Majesty's  Instructions  to  the 
several  Governors  of  the  Colonys  in  North  America,  for 
raising  a  Body  of  Troops  to  join  the  Expedition,  which  is 
shortly  to  go  from  hence  to  the  West  Indies,  under  the 
Command  of  My  Lord  Cathcart.  I  conclude  You  will  have 
heard,  that  Mr.  Belcher  has  already  received  the  King's 
Orders,^  (They  having  been  sent  from  hence  in  Janry  last) 
to  make  the  necessary  Dispositions  for  raising  Men  in  the 
Provinces  of  Massachusets  Bay,  and  New  Hampshire ; 
Which  I  hope.  He  will  have  accordingly  done,  in  the  best 
Manner  He  has  been  able. 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  j 2 6pj,  lyy.  A  transcript  is  in  the 
Library  of  Congress. 

2  William  Blakeney.  Folio  158  of  this  same  manuscript  con- 
tains Newcastle's  letter  of  April  5  to  Governor  Belcher.  Sub- 
stantially the  same  letter  to  the  Governor  and  Company  of  Rhode 
Island  is  printed  in  Kimball :  "  Corres.  Col  .Govs,  of  Rhode  Island," 

I,  143- 

'  The  preliminary  instructions  of  Jan.  5,  1739-40,  are  printed  in 
New  Hampshire  Provincial  Papers,  5,  47-49.  There  is  an  inter- 
esting letter  of  June  29,  1740,  from  George  Jaffrey,  Theodore 
Atkinson,  and  four  others  to  Shirley  regarding  the  New  Hampshire 
levies  for  the  expedition  in  C.  O.  5,  899,  p.  368. 
VOL.1  —  c  17 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

You  are  no  Stranger  to  the  Complaints,  that  have  been 
brought  hither,  against  Mr.  Belcher's  Conduct,  in  the 
Administration  of  his  Government ;  and  Mr.  Western  will 
have  acquainted  You,  with  the  Application,  that  has  been 
made,  by  your  Friends  here,  to  procure  the  Government 
for  you,  in  case  of  Mr.  Belcher's  Removal ;  And  tho'  there 
is  at  present,  no  Resolution  taken  upon  that  Head,  one 
Reason  for  which  may  have  been,  that  It  might  not  be 
thought  adviseable  to  appoint  a  New  Governor  at  a  Time, 
when  a  Commission  of  such  great  Importance  was  upon 
the  Point  of  being  executed,)  yet  I  may  assure  You,  (as  I 
have  already  done  Mr.  Western)  That  in  case  of  a  Vacancy 
of  the  Government  of  New  England,  I  shall  think  of  no 
other  Person  to  recommend  to  His  Majesty  to  fill  it,  but 
yourself ;  In  which  I  am  persuaded.  All  the  King's  Servants 
will  readily  concur. 

It  has  been  represented  here,  by  some  Persons,  who  are 
not  unacquainted  with  the  Affairs  of  New  England,  That 
Mr.  Belcher's  Conduct  has  rendered  Him  so  disagreeable 
to  the  People  of  Both  the  Provinces,  under  his  Govern- 
ment, That  He  will  find  great  Difficulty,  in  Executing  His 
Majesty's  Orders,  for  raising  a  Number  of  Men  within 
those  Provinces.  If  there  should  be  any  Grounds  for  such 
an  Apprehension,  (which  however,  I  hope,  is  carried  too 
far)  I  doubt  not  but  You  would  be  ready,  in  that  Case,  to 
assist  Mr.  Belcher  to  the  Utmost  of  your  Power,  that  His 
Majesty's  Service,  in  this  critical  Conjuncture  might  not 
suffer  thro'  Mr.  Belcher's  Misfortune.  And  as  a  sincere 
Friend  of  yours,  I  should  think  It  might  even  be  a  pru- 
dent Step  for  You,  effectually  to  put  it  out  of  the  Power  of 
Those,  who  may  wish  better  to  Mr.  Belcher  than  to  You, 
to  allege  in  his  Excuse,  that  you  had  made  use  of  the  Credit 
and  Influence,  which  You  have  acquired  with  the  People 
of  New  England,  to  obstruct  the  Governor  in  the  Perform- 
ance of  this  Service ;  And,  for  that  Purpose,  that  You 
should  take  the  first  Opportunity,  after  the  Receipt  of  this 
Letter,  to  go  to  Mr.  Belcher,  and  assure  Him,  that  you  are 
ready  and  desirous  to  give  Him  all  the  Assistance  in  your 

i8 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM   SHIRLEY 

Power,  in  promoting,  and  forwarding  the  Levys  to  be  made 
within  His  Government,  pursuant  to  His  Majty's  Orders 
and  Instructions  to  Him  for  that  Purpose ;  And  that  You 
should  be  glad,  if  He  would  let  you  know,  in  what  Manner 
You  may  be  serviceable  to  Him  therein.^ 

1  need  not  tell  You,  of  how  great  Importance  It  is  to 
his  Majty's  Service,  That  these  Levys  should  be  made,  as 
full,  and  with  as  much  Expedition  as  possible ;  And  I  shall 
therefore  only  assure  You,  That  if  It  shall  appear.  That 
your  Weight  and  Influence  shall  have  contributed  to  the 
Carrying  Them  on,  with  success  and  Dispatch,  It  will  effec- 
tually recommend  You  to  His  Majty's  Favour;  And  that 

I  shall  gladly  take  an  Opportunity  of  representing  your 
services,  upon  this  Occasion,  in  the  most  advantageous 
Light. 2  My  Regard  for  You,  and  Desire  to  serve  You,  as 
well  as  my  Zeal  for  carrying  on  the  Levys,  in  North  America, 

^  On  this  point  see  Shirley's  letter  to  Newcastle  of  May  12,  fol- 
lowing. On  June  28  Shirley  wrote  that  he  would  offer  to  assist 
Governor  Belcher  to  raise  men  in  New  Hampshire  and  Massa- 
chusetts for  service  in  the  Spanish  War,  but  that  he  expected  a  poor 
reception  for  his  offers  (C.  O.  5,  899,  p.  298).  He  had  already 
written  Newcastle  on  May  26  as  to  the  lack  of  naval  stores  on  hand 
and  the  difficulty  experienced  in  supplying  masts  for  war  vessels 
{ibid.  p.  293).  On  July  12  Governor  Belcher  requested  Shirley  to 
cease  recommending  persons  for  offices  in  the  king's  service,  which 
letter  was  forwarded  by  the  latter  when  writing  to  Newcastle,  Aug. 
4,  1740  (C.  O.  5,  899,  p.  310).  Specific  examples  of  men  rejected 
by  Governor  Belcher  are  given  in  Robert  Temple  to  Shirley,  July 
1740  (C.  O.  5,  899,  p.  360).  Other  letters  bearing  on  the  matter 
are  those  from  Timothy  Ruggles  to  Shirley,  Aug.  2  (ibid.  p.  374) ; 
Captain  John  Turney,  Aug.  3  (ibid.  p.  373) ;  John  Winslow,  Aug. 

II  (ibid.  p.  365) ;  John  Prescott,  Aug.  18  (ibid.  p.  367),  and  Shirley 
to  Newcastle,  Sept.  18,  1740,  regarding  the  levies  to  be  raised  in 
Massachusetts  (ibid.  p.  351). 

2  In  the  Colonial  Office  Manuscripts  (P.  R.  O.,  C.  0.  5,  899)  is 
a  statement  of  approximately  3700  words  setting  forth  "  the  services 
performed  by  William  Shirley  Esq.  in  the  Assistance  he  gave  to 
the  raising  Levies  in  New  England  for  the  Service  of  the  Expedi- 
tion under  the  command  of  Lord  Cathcart,"  etc.  This  statement 
appears  to  have  been  the  basis  of  such  a  representation  as  that  of 
which  Newcastle  writes, 

19 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

with  success,  which  I  think  of  such  Importance  to  the  Pub- 
Hck,  is  the  Occasion  of  my  giving  You  this  Trouble,  which, 
I  am  persuaded,  You  will  take,  as  It  is  really  designed. 

I  am  etca. 

HoLLEs  Newcastle. 
Endorsed: 

Drat,  to  Mr.   Shirley. 
April   5th.    1740. 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

Boston,     N  :  Engld.     May  12,  1740. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

I  could  not  be  easy,  after  receiving  my  late  Information 
of  yr  Grace's  Exceeding  Goodness  to  me,  without  troubling 
you  wth  some  Expression  of  my  Gratitude,  wch  I  there- 
fore hope  yr  Grace  will  indulge  me  in.  I  must  confess, 
upon  first  considering  the  present  Obstacle  to  the  promo- 
tion, wch  yr  Grace  intended  to  honour  me  with,  I  was  at 
some  loss,  whether  I  should  not  be  pleas'd  wth  a  Delay  wch 
would  exempt  me  from  all  possible  risque  of  being  thought 
to  have  been  an  hindrance  to  his  Alajesty's  service  at  this 
Critical  Juncture.  But  my  friends  here  have  given  me 
such  strong  Assurances,  and  I  have  since  had  so  many 
proofs,  that  my  succeeding  in  present  to  the  Governmt  of 
this  province  would  have  been  no  Disservice  to  the  raising 
of  Soldiers  here  and  in  the  Neighbouring  province  of  New 
Hampshire,  that  it  now  gives  me  some  Concern  to  have  lost  one 
Opportunity  of  contributing  to  his  Majesty's  Service.  Not 
that  I  should  have  assum'd  to  myself  any  great  Merit  in  the 
Success  of  the  present  Levies ;  For  indeed  the  Eagerness, 
wch  appears  in  the  people  here  to  serve  in  the  Expedition 
agt  the  Spanish  West  Indies,  seems  to  be  suffict  of  itself, 
without  a  Govr's  personal  Interest,  to  engage  'em  in  it,  and 

^  B.M.,  Additional  Manuscript  326QJ,  279.  A  transcript  is  in  the 
Library  of  Congress. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

even  to  surmount  any  disgusts,  they  may  possibly  entertain 
agt  one ;  And  I  am  inform'd  there  is  an  appearance  that 
the  Levies  (at  least  in  this  province)  will  be  compleated,  as 
soon  as  the  Commissions  shall  arrive,  wch  are  expected  every 
Day ;  And  hope  that  even  the  Gentlemen  of  New  Hampshire 
province,  who  if  Disaffection  to  a  Governt.  would  possi- 
bly make  'em  run  so  counter  to  their  Duty  to  his  Majesty, 
as  to  oppose  the  present  Levies  (least  the  success  of  'em 
should  be  imputed  to  his  present  Excy's  Interest  among  the 
people)  would  be  in  Danger  of  doing  so,  will  not  think  of 
such  unjustifiable  Measures.  I  am  sure  they  have  been 
caution'd  agt  it  and  advis'd  otherwise. 

Upon  this  Occasion  it  is  some  satisfaction  to  me  that  I 
have  been  so  fortunate  as  to  have  had  some  small  share  in 
promoting  his  Majy's  service  in  this  Expedition  (before  the 
Arrival  of  the  last  Vessells  from  England)  by  procuring  a 
speedy  supply  of  stores  for  Admiral  Vernon's  Squadron  at 
Jamaica,  wch  his  Majy's  storekeeper  there  had  wrote  for 
by  the  Admiral's  Order,  and  the  Astrea  prize  taken  at  Porto 
Bello  ^  is  this  day  arriv'd  to  fetch ;  and  wch  would  have 
been  retarded,  if  I  had  not  taken  upon  me  to  bear  the  Deputy 
Surveyor  of  his  Majesty's  Woods  here  harmless  from  any 
blame  or  Censure  at  the  Navy  board  for  acting  as  I  advis'd 
him  on  this  Occasion.  But  the  particulars  of  this  I  shall 
not  trouble  your  Grace  wth,  nor  detain  yr  Grace  longer  than 
to  assure  you  that  however  yr  Grace  shall  be  pleas'd  to 
dispose  of  me,  the  Chief  Aim,  and  business  of  my  life  shall 
be  to  pursue  the  united  Interest  of  his  Majy  and  the  Country ; 
and  this  Rule  of  action  I  flatter  myself  I  shall  steadily  ad- 
here to,  because  I  am  perswaded,  my  Lord,  it  is  the  most 
acceptable  return  I  can  make  to  yr  Grace  for  yr  patronage  and 
protection,  besides  it  will  gratify  a  strong  ambition  wch  I 
have,  to  copy  in  my  low  sphere  of  Life,  what  yr  Grace 
has  long  been  in  that  Exalted  station  wch  has  render'd 
you  a  Blessing  not  only  to  the  publick  in  general,  but  to 
private  families    in  particular,  and   to  none    more  so    than 

K  Porto  Bello  had  been  taken  by  Vernon  on  Nov.  22,  1739. 

21 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

to  mine,  who  am  with  the  Deepest  sense  of  Duty  and  Grati- 
tude 

My  Lord  Duke 

Yr  Grace's  most  Dutifull, 

and  most  Obedt.  Humble  Servt. 

W.  Shirley. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE ' 

Boston,  N.  Engld.  Augt.  4,  1740. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

In  Obedience  to  yr  Grace's  Commands,  upon  the  Re- 
ceipt of  the  Letter,  with  wch  yr  Grace  honour'd  me  by  Col. 
Blakeney,  I  sent  my  son  to  wait  on  Govr  Belcher  wth  a 
Letter  acquainting  him  that  as  I  thought  it  the  Duty  of  every 
person  withm  his  Excy's  Governmts  to  give  what  assist- 
ance he  could  in  promoting  &  forwarding  the  new  Levies, 
pursuant  to  his  Majy's  Instructions  for  raising  a  number 
of  men  within  the  two  provinces,  I  was  ready  &  desirous  to 
contribute  all  the  assistance  in  my  power  towards  it,  &  that 
if  his  Excy  would  be  pleas'd  to  let  me  know,  in  what  manner 
I  might  be  serviceable  to  him  therein,  I  would  wth  great 
pleasure  wait  upon  him  to  receive  his  commands  in  that 
respect,  &  order'd  my  son  to  beg  the  favour  of  his  answer, 
whether  he  would  permit  me  to  wait  upon  him  for  that  pur- 
pose. And  at  the  same  time  I  sent  one  Mr  Caverley  a  young 
Gentleman,  whose  father  lives  in  very  good  Circumstances  in 
this  Town,  &  had  serv'd  as  an  Officer  in  Spain  for  eight  years 
under  the  late  Earl  Rivers  &  Genl  Stanhope,  to  offer  him- 
self to  his  Excy  to  serve  as  a  Second  Lieutent  in  one  of  the 
two  Companies.  To  wch  his  Excy  after  civilly  receiving 
my  son  &  the  young  Gentleman,  return'd  me  for  Answer  by 
word  of  mouth,  that  he  would  think  of  what  I  had  wrote. 

The  day  following,  as  we  had  not  then  one  Soldier  enlisted 
in  the  Province ;   nor  Orders  issu'd  out  to  beat  up  for  Volun- 

iP.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  899,  310. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

tiers,  nor  Money  in  the  Treasury  to  pay  the  Bounty,  nor  the 
Subsistence  Money,  wch  had  been  voted  by  the  Genl  Court, 
I  thought  it  might  be  of  service  in  Expediting  the  Levies,  if 
I  could  prevail  wth  Mr  Caverley  the  father,  who  had  been 
well  vers'd  in  the  business  of  raising  recruits  in  England,  to 
offer  his  service  to  his  Excy  to  raise  men  for  the  Expedi- 
tion, &  Subsist  'em  at  his  own  Expense,  till  he  might  be 
reimburs'd,  wch  Mr.  Caverley  at  my  request  very  generously 
did  in  a  Letter  to  his  Excy,  wch  was  deliver'd  him  by  my 
son,  wherein  he  desired  leave  to  wait  on  his  Excy,  &  that  he 
would  furnish  him  wth  beating  Orders,  or  proper  powers  to 
enlist  men.  And  the  next  day  I  sent  one  Mr  MacGown  to 
wait  on  his  Excy  wth  a  recommendation  of  him  for  a  Cap- 
tain's post  upon  the  Terms  of  his  raising  a  Company  of  able 
Body'd,  Effective  Men  Natives  of  Ireland,  seventy  of  which 
he  had  actually  engag'd,  &  could  have  rais'd  the  remainder 
&  50  more,  if  wanted,  in  a  few  days.  This  man  was  a  very 
good  Officer,  had  serv'd  in  this  Country  agt  the  Indians, 
&  under  E.  Stairs  in  Scotland,  &  his  father  had  been  an  Offi- 
cer in  K.  William's  service,  &  his  Grandfather  one  in  the 
service  of  K.  Charles ;  and  to  make  my  recommendation  of 
him  the  more  effectual,  I  procur'd  for  him  the  recommen- 
dation also  of  Col.  Winslow  a  Gentleman  in  great  favour 
wth  his  Excy,  who  pressed  the  acceptance  of  him  as  one 
who  would  be  of  great  service  to  his  Majesty  in  the  Expe- 
dition. And,  as  one  Captn  Pollard  is  esteem'd  the  most  fit 
person  among  the  Natives  of  this  place  to  serve  his  Majy 
in  this  Expedition  and  do  honour  to  the  Country  in  it,  &  is 
so  popular  a  man  that  no  person  doubted  his  being  able  to 
raise  200  men  in  a  short  time ;  and  he  had  been  courted  by 
several  of  the  Councill  here,  &  others  of  the  Govr's  friends, 
to  offer  his  Service  to  his  Excy  as  a  Captain  of  one  of  the 
Companies,  wth  an  assurance  that  he  would  be  accepted,  but 
all  without  Effect,  he  having  declar'd  that  he  would  accept  of 
no  Post  from  him,  &  being  in  such  Circumstances  as  to  be 
Indifferent  abt  the  Perfermt,  I  thought  I  should  do  a  good 
piece  of  service  to  his  Majesty,  &  not  unacceptable  to  his 
Excy  if  I  could  prevail  on  Mr  Pollard  to  give  me  leave  to 

23 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

offer  his  Service  in  the  Expedition  to  him,  wch  I  accord- 
ingly  did. 

As  to  Mr  MacGown,  his  Excy  told  him  at  first,  if  he  had 
any  occasion  for  him,  he  would  send  for  him ;  But  the  same 
day  he  told  Col.  Winslow before  menton'd,  &  one  of  the  Coun- 
cil, that  he  would  not  by  any  means  hear  of  MacGown, 
because  I  had  recommended  him,  otherwise  he  should  have 
had  a  Commission ;  and  hereupon  the  poor  man  dismiss'd 
25  of  his  Countrymen,  who  had  foUow'd  him  to  Boston, 
and  is  gone  to  Col.  Blakeney  at  N.  York,  to  whom,  I  am  in- 
form'd,  Ld  Cathcart  had  recommended  him  in  England, 
as  a  person  well  qualified  for  his  Majy's  Service. 

As  to  Mr  Caverley,  his  Excy  was  pleas'd  to  send  for  him, 
&  acquaint  him,  that  he  could  not  grant  his  Request  as  to  his 
Son,  because  I  had  recommended  him ;  for  if  he  should, 
he  might  be  plagu'd  wth  every  Pettifogger's  recommenda- 
tion, expressing  likewise  much  resentmt  at  my  pretending  to 
recommend  Captn  Pollard  to  him,  &  to  intermeddle  in  these 
Affairs ;  to  wch  purpose  he  soon  after  sent  me  a  Letter,  tho 
in  softer  Terms,  forbidding  me  to  trouble  him  any  further 
wch  Letter  I  have  inclos'd  to  yr  Grace,  subscrib'd,  &  di- 
rected wth  his  own  hand,  &  under  his  Seal,  the  other  part  of 
his  Secretary's  handwriting.  —  But  as  to  Mr  Caverley's 
Offer  to  raise  men,  his  Excy  told  him,  he  would  lay  it  be- 
fore the  Councill  for  their  Advice,  wch  he  did  the  same  day, 
&  influenc'd  them  not  to  accept  of  it  for  the  reasons  men- 
tion'd  in  their  Advice  to  him  thereupon,  as  will  appear 
by  a  copy  of  it  attested  by  the  Deputy  Secretary.  How- 
ever Mr  Caverley's  offer  had  this  good  effect  wth  regard  to 
the  Province  that  his  Excy  two  days  after  issu'd  out  his  Or- 
ders to  beat  up  for  Voluntiers,  &  wth  regard  to  his  Son,  that 
the  Council  esteeming  the  offer  a  well  spirited  thing,  pre- 
vall'd  wth  his  Excy  to  grant  him  a  Second  Lieutenancy ; 
and  Mr  Caverley  soon  after  enlisted  50  Men  towards  fill- 
ing up  the  Company,  in  wch  his  son  was  plac'd. 

Upon  the  receipt  of  his  Excy's  Letter  to  me  findl  g  that 
any  further  Offers  of  Assistance  to  him,  In  raising  the  Levies, 
from  me,  would  be  very  disagreeable,  and  not  only  hurt  my 

24 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

friends,  but  hinder  his  Majy's  Service,  I  desisted  from  mak- 
ing him  any ;  but  I  have  found  Opportunities  of  contribut- 
ing to  the  Service  of  the  Expedition  in  other  ways,  without 
his  Excy's  Knowledge.  For  there  being  but  four  of  the  thirty 
Commissions  sent  over  by  Col.  Blakeney,  allotted  to  Govr 
Belcher  to  fill  up,  when  ten  Companies  were  raising  in  the 
Province,  those  Captains  &  their  Companies,  who  could  not 
have  any  of  the  four  Commissions,  but  must  go  to  the  West 
Indies  without  Commission,  Cloaths  or  Arms  upon  the 
Govr's  Certificate  &  Letter  to  Ld  Cathcart,  &  Col.  Blake- 
ney's  Assurance  that  they  will  be  receiv'd  into  pay,  &  put 
into  Commission  by  him,  &  furnish'd  with  Arms  &  Cloaths, 
were  exceedingly  disappointed  &  dispirited ;  &  one  of  the 
Captains  in  the  Country,  who  had  compleated  his  Com- 
pany, has  actually  dismiss'd  his  Men,  &  two  more  of  'em  in 
this  Town  were  upon  the  point  of  disbanding  their  Com- 
panies (upon  the  Difficulties  arising  from  their  want  of  a 
Commission  &  Arms  to  keep  their  men  together,  as  well  as 
disgust  &  resentmt  to  the  Govr,  from  whom  they  appre- 
hend they  have  receiv'd  ill  usage),  had  not  I  us'd  my  In- 
terest wth  'em  to  perswade  &  engage  'em  to  go  Into  the 
Service  notwithstanding  their  disappointmt  &  Difficulties, 
wch  they  are  now  determin'd  &  have  absolutely  promis'd 
me  to  do  wth  their  two  Companies,  as  will  appear  to  yr 
Grace  by  Captn  Turney's  Letter  to  me,  &  Captn  Richard's 
Letter  to  Mrs  Cosby,  who  was  well  acquainted  wth  his 
Bror's  family  at  New  York.  And  I  have  a  very  good  View 
of  recovering  the  other  Company,  wch  is  actually  dispers'd, 
to  his  Majy's  Service,  of  wch  I  hope  to  give  a  good  Account 
by  the  next  Ship.  And  as  Col.  Gooch  &  Col.  Blakeney 
had  inform'd  me  by  Lieutent  Govr  Clark  that  one  Company 
of  Indians  would  be  very  usefull  in  the  Expedition,  I  have 
procur'd  one  to  be  rais'd  by  Captn  Ruggles,  &  himself  to  go 
into  the  Service  with  'em  upon  the  prospect  of  a  Commis- 
sion from  Ld  Cathcart,  as  will  appear  from  Govr  Clark's, 
&  Captn  Ruggles  Letters  to  me.  What  is  become  of  the 
two  other  Companies  of  this  Province  wch  were  raising  in 
the  Country,  I  have  not  heard.  But  if  I  find  that  they  are  in 

25 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Danger  of  Dispersing  upon  their  disappointmt  in  not  being 
put  into  Commission,  &  receiving  their  Arms,  and  Cloaths 
here,  I  shall  use  my  utmost  application  to  recover  'em. 

As  a  considerable  Expence  has  arose  to  the  Captains  by 
means  of  the  too  scanty  Allowance  of  the  Genl  Court  for 
Subsistence  of  the  men,  being  no  more  than  2s  3d  Sterl.  a  week 
for  each  man,  whereby  the  Captns  are  much  out  of  pocket, 
I  have  undertaken,  &  doubt  not  to  contribute,  by  my  friends 
among  the  Representatives  &  Councill  towards  remedying 
that  Evill  at  the  next  meeting  of  the  Court.  And  as  I  have 
had  Information  that  Col.  Blakeney  had  drawn  bills  to  the 
amt  of  abt  1500  1.  sterl.  upon  the  Governmt  at  home,  to  be 
endors'd  by  Govr  Belcher,  for  paymt  of  the  Officers  here, 
&  that  our  Merchts  have  hesitated  abt  taking  the  bills,  I 
have  this  day  wrote  to  Govr  Clark  to  inquire  into  that  fact 
of  Col.  Blakeney,  to  whom,  I  am  inform'd,  an  Express  is 
dispatch'd  on  that  acct,  &  to  assure  him  (if  there  should  be 
occasion  for  it)  that  I  will  find,  among  my  friends,  purchasers 
for  those  bills,  or  such  Indorsers,  as  shall  make  'em  market- 
able, wch  I  doubt  not  of  doing. 

These  are  the  Services,  wch  in  Obedience  to  yr  Grace's 
Commands  I  have  attempted  in  this  province,  where  I 
wish  it  had  been  in  my  Power  to  do  more,  but  hope,  yr  Grace 
will  make  Allowance  for  the  Disadvantages  of  an  Opposition 
from  the  Gentleman,  who  has.  the  disposal  of  the  Commis- 
sions ;  and  of  Certificates  &  subsistence  money  for  those  Cap- 
tains, who  raise  Companies  without  Commissions. 

To  make  amends  for  my  Defects  in  this  province,  I  have 
endeavour'd  to  be  serviceable  in  the  neighbouring  prov- 
ince of  New  Hampshire,  &  Colony  of  Rhode  Island ;  from 
the  former  of  wch  I  have  receiv'd,  in  answer  to  an  Ex- 
press wch  I  sent  'em  upon  the  rect  of  yr  Grace's  Letter, 
the  strongest  Assurance  in  a  Joint  Letter  from  Six  Gentle- 
men, viz.  three  of  the  Councill,  two  of  their  house  of  Repre- 
sentatives (one  of  wch  is  the  Speaker)  &  the  Clerk  of  the  As- 
sembly, who  intirely  govern  the  Assembly,  &  have  the  chief 
Influence  over  the  people  of  the  province,  that  they  will 
not  only  avoid  all  opposition  to  the  Levies  out  of  disaffec- 

26 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

tion  to  the  Govt,  &  for  fear  of  his  raising  a  merit  to  him- 
self by  the  success  of  'em,  but  exert  their  utmost  Interest 
in  promoting  them ;  as  will  appear  by  their  Letter  to  me ; 
And  I  doubt  not  of  their  Sincerity  &  Success,  unless 
the  people  there  are  too  much  exasperated  by  the  Govr's 
filling  up  all  his  four  Commissions  in  the  Massachusett's 
bay,  &  putting  them  upon  the  Difficulty  of  raising  men  with- 
out one  Commission,  or  any  Arms  or  Cloaths  for  the  present, 
wch  no  Colony  or  province  besides  is  under.  And  as  to 
Rhode  Island,  where  I  am  well  known  by  frequent  visits 
there  on  his  Majy's  Service,  as  Advocate  Genl,  &  am 
not  without  some  interest  among  'em,  I  took  Occasion 
(being  there)  in  the  beginning  of  July  to  assure  'em  that  it 
would  be  a  most  acceptable  Instance  of  their  Duty  to  his 
Majy,  &  Zeal  for  the  publick  good,  to  contribute  as  much 
as  they  could  towards  the  Service  of  the  Expedition,  where- 
upon the  Deputy  Govr  &  Councill,  wch  was  then  sitting, 
appointed  a  Committee  of  three  of  their  Members  to  have 
a  Conference  wth  me  at  my  Lodgings,  in  wch  the  Gentle- 
men of  the  Committee  assur'd  me  in  the  name  of  their 
principals,  that  upon  my  advice  to  'em,  notwithstanding  their 
people  had  fitted  out  six  privateers,  &  they  had  rais'd  300 
menfor  the  Expedition,  wch  was  much  more  than  their  pro- 
portion among  the  Colonies,  they  would  proceed  to  aug- 
ment their  forces  for  the  Expedition,  wch  they  inform'd 
me,  they  believ'd  they  should  do  to  500,  wch  in  proportion 
would  be  equal  to  3,500  in  our  Province  ;  but  the  day  follow- 
ing news  arrived  by  the  two  first  Lieutents  that  only  two 
Companies  were  demanded,  &  no  more  would  be  receiv'd 
from  'em,  so  that  one  of  their  three  Companies  must  be  dis- 
miss'd.  What  effect  that  might  have  upon  their  Councill, 
when  I  left  'em,  I  know  not,  but  expect  to  be  soon  inform'd 
in  a  Letter  from  the  Gentlemen  of  the  Committee. 

I  shall  trespass  upon  yr  Grace  no  longer  than  to  observe 
that  the  only  Method  taken  by  all  his  Majy's  Govrs  upon  the 
Continent  to  raise  Men  for  the  Expedition  has  been  to  grant 
Commissions  to  the  Captains  on  condition  of  their  raising 
100  men  each,  wch  is  all  the  share  the  Govrs  have  had  in 

27 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

it ;  &  that  in  the  Colony  of  Connetlcutt,  soon  after  a  Bounty- 
was  voted  for  500  men,  700  gave  in  their  names  to  the 
Governmt,  &  soon  after  the  same  Vote  in  Rhode  Island 
Colony  300  men  were  rais'd,  even  before  a  Captain  was 
nam'd  in  either  of  the  Colonies,  wch  fact  is  a  Demonstra- 
tion that  the  success  of  the  Levies  there  was  owing  entirely 
to  the  Spirit  of  the  people ;  and  I  can  venture  to  assure 
yr  Grace  it  is  the  Opinion  of  all  unprejudic'd  Persons 
here,  &  true  in  fact,  that  had  every  one  of  his  Majy's  Govrs 
happen'd  to  be  turn'd  out  before  the  Executing  of  the  Com- 
missions for  raising  of  men,  &  mere  Strangers  have  been 
sent  to  execute  'em,  not  one  man  less  would  have  been 
rais'd  on  that  acct,  provided  those  Govrs  had  not  endeavour'd 
to  defeat  the  Service  by  naming  Improper  Captains,  to 
whom  the  people  had  an  Aversion. 

I  am  now  to  ask  yr  Grace's  Pardon  for  detaining  you  so 
long,  &  am  with  the  greatest  Duty  &  Gratitude, 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Yr  Grace's  most  Dutifull 

&  most  Obedt  Humble  Servt 

W.    Shirley. 
The  Vouchers  of  the  facts  abovemention'd  I  have  sent  to 
Mr  Western,  &  desir'd  him  to  wait  on  yr  Grace  wth  them. 


COMMISSION  TO  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY,  GOVERNOR 
OF  MASSACHUSETTS  1 

George  the  Second  by  the  Grace  of  God,  of  Great  Brit- 
ain France  and  Ireland  King,  Defender  of  the  Faith  etca. 
To  Our  Trusty  and  Wellbeloved  William  Shirley  Esqr. 
Greeting.  Whereas  by  a  Royal  Charter  under  the  Great 
Seal  of  England  bearing  date  the  Seventh  day  of  October 
in  the  third  year  of  the  Reign  of  King  William  the  third, 
the  Colony  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  the  Colony  of  New 
Plymouth,  the  Province  of  Main  In  New  England,  the  Terri- 

^  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  199,  III.  Inclosed  in  Lords  of  Trade  to 
Duke  of  Newcastle,  July  22,   1741. 

28 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

tory  of  Accadle  or  Nova  Scotia  and  the  Lands  lying  between 
the  said  Territory  of  Nova  Scotia  and  the  Province  of  Main 
aforesaid  were  United  Erected  and  incorporated  into  one  real 
Province,  by  the  Name  of  Our  Province  of  the  Massachu- 
sets  Bay  in  New  England,  and  his  said  Majesty  did  thereby 
Grant  to  Our  loving  Subjects,  the  Inhabitants  of  Our  said 
Province  or  Territory  of  the  Massachusets  Bay  in  New 
England,  and  their  Successors,  that  there  shall  be  a  Governor, 
a  Lieutenant  Governor  and  Secretary  of  Our  said  Province 
and  Territory,  to  be  from  time  to  time  Appointed  and 
Commissionated  by  the  said  King  William,  his  Heirs  and 
Successors,  with  several  Privileges,  Franchises  and  Immu- 
nities thereby  granted  to  Our  said  loving  Subjects,  And 
whereas  We  did  by  Our  Letters  Patents  Under  Our  Great 
Seal  of  Great  Britain  bearing  date  at  Westminster  the 
(sic)  ^  day  of  (sic)  in  the  (sic)  Year  of  Our  Reign,  Consti- 
tute and  Appoint  Jonathan  Belcher  Esqr.  Captain  General 
and  Governor  in  Chief  in  and  over  Our  said  Province  of 
the  Massachusets  Bay  in  New  England,  for  and  during  Our 
Will  and  Pleasure,  as  by  the  said  recited  Patents,  relation 
being  thereunto  had,  may  more  fully  and  at  large  appear; 
Now  know  you,  that  We  have  revoked  and  determined, 
and  by  these  Presents  do  revoke  and  determine,  the  said 
recited  Letters  Patents,  and  every  Clause  Article  and  thing 
therein  contained.  And  further  know  you,  that  We,  re- 
posing Especial  Trust  and  Confidence  in  the  Prudence, 
Courage  and  Loyalty  of  you  the  said  William  Shirley,  of 
Our  Especial  Grace,  certain  knowledge  and  mere  Motion, 
have  thought  fit  to  Constitute  and  Appoint  and  by  these 
Presents  do  Constitute  and  appoint  You  the  said  William 
Shirley  to  be  Our  Capt.  General  and  Governor  in  Chief  in 
and  over  Our  said  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay  in 
New  England.  And  for  your  better  Guidance  and  direction 
We  do  hereby  require  and  Command  you  to  do  and  exe- 
cute all  things  in  due  manner  that  shall  belong  unto  the 
Trust  we  have  reposed  in  you,  according  to  the  several 
Powers    and   Authorities    mentioned    in    the    said    Charter, 

^  The  date  is  omitted  in  the  original. 
29 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

And  in  these  Presents,  and  such  further  Powers  Instructions 
and  Authorities  as  you  shall  receive,  or  which  shall  at  any 
time  hereafter  be  granted  or  Appointed  you,  under  Our 
Sign  Manual  and  Signet  or  by  Our  Order  in  Our  Privy 
Council,  in  pursuance  of  the  said  Charter,  and  according  to 
such  reasonable  Laws  and  Statutes  as  are  now  in  force, 
or  which  hereafter  shall  be  made  and  agreed  upon,  in  such 
manner  and  form  as  by  the  said  Charter  is  directed. 

And  Our  Will  and  Pleasure  is,  that  you  the  said  William 
Shirley,  after  the  Publication  of  these  Our  Letters  Patents,  do 
in  the  first  place  take  the  Oaths  appointed  to  be  taken  by 
an  Act  passed  in  the  first  year  of  his  said  late  Majesty's 
Reign,  Entituled,  An  Act  for  the  further  Security  of  his 
Majesty's  Person  and  Government  and  the  Succession  of  the 
Crown  in  the  Heirs  of  the  late  Princess  Sophia  being  Prot- 
estants and  for  Extinguishing  the  hopes  of  the  pretended 
Prince  of  Wales  and  his  open  and  Secret  Abettors ;  As  also 
that  you  make  and  Subscribe  the  declaration  mentioned 
in  An  Act  of  Parliament  made  in  the  25th  Year  of  the 
Reign  of  King  Charles  the  Second,  Entituled,  An  Act  for 
preventing  dangers  which  may  happen  from  Popish  Recusants, 
and  likewise  that  you  take  the  usual  Oath  for  the  due 
Execution  of  the  Office  and  trust  of  Our  Captain  General 
and  Governor  in  Chief  in  and  over  the  said  Province,  as 
well  with  Regard  to  the  due  and  Impartial  administra- 
tion of  Justice,  as  otherwise,  and  further  that  you  take  the 
Oath  required  to  be  taken  by  Governors  of  Plantations, 
to  do  their  utmost  that  the  several  Laws  relating  to  Trade 
and  the  Plantations  be  Observed ;  which  said  Oaths  and 
declarations  Our  Council  of  Our  said  Province,  or  any  three 
of  the  Members  thereof,  have  hereby  full  Power  and 
Authority,  and  are  required,  to  tender  and  Administer  unto 
You  and  in  your  Absence  to  Our  Lieutenant  Governor 
of  Our  said  Province,  if  there  be  any  upon  the  Place,  all 
which  being  duely  performed,  you  shall  administer  to  each 
of  the  Members  of  Our  said  Council,  and  to  Our  said 
Lieutenant  Governor,  if  there  be  any  upon  the  Place,  the 
Oaths   mentioned  in  the  said  Act,   Entituled,  An  Act  for 

30 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  further  Security  of  his  Majesty's  Person  and  Govern- 
menty  and  the  Succession  of  the  Crown  in  the  Heirs  of  the 
late  Princess  Sophia  being  Protestants,  And  for  Extinguishing 
the  hopes  of  the  pretended  Prince  of  Wales  and  his  open  and 
Secret  Abettors,  As  also  to  cause  them  to  make  and  Sub- 
scribe the  foremention'd  declaration,  and  to  administer 
to  them  the  Oath  for  the  due  Execution  of  their  Places  and 
Trusts. 

As  also  that  you  Administer  or  cause  to  be  administered 
unto  all  the  Members  that  shall  be  Elected  to  serve  in  the 
General  Assembly  of  Our  said  Province  the  Oaths  mentioned 
in  the  said  Act,  Entituled,  An  Act  for  the  further  Security 
of  his  Majesty^ s  Person  and  Government,  and  the  Succession 
of  the  Crown,  in  the  Heirs  of  the  late  Princess  Sophia,  being 
Protestants,  And  for  Extinguishing  the  hopes  of  the  pretended 
Prince  of  Wales,  and  his  open  and  Secret  Abettors;  And 
likewise  cause  them  to  make  and  Subscribe  the  foremention'd 
declaration,  and  until  the  same  shall  be  so  taken  and  Sub- 
scribed, no  Person  shall  be  capable  of  sitting,  though  Elected. 

Our  further  Will  and  Pleasure  is,  that  you  shall  and  may 
keep  and  Use  the  Publick  Seal  of  Our  said  Province,  for 
Sealing  all  things  whatsoever,  that  pass  the  Great  Seal  of 
Our  said  Province  Under  your  Government. 

And  We  do  hereby  give  and  Grant  unto  You  full  Power 
and  Authority  where  you  shall  see  Cause,  and  shall  judge 
any  Offender  or  Offenders,  in  Capital  or  Criminal  matters, 
or  for  any  Fines  or  Forfeitures  due  unto  Us,  fit  objects  of 
Our  Mercy,  to  Pardon  all  such  Offenders,  and  to  remit  such 
Fines  and  Forfeitures,  Treason  and  Wilfull  Murder  only 
excepted,  in  which  Cases  you  shall  likewise  have  Power, 
upon  Extraordinary  Occasions,  to  Grant  Reprieves  to  the 
Offenders  therein,  to  the  End  and  until  our  Pleasure  shall 
be  further   known. 

And  We  do  .  hereby  give  and  grant  unto  you  the  said 
William  Shirley,  by  Your  Self  or  by  your  Captains  and 
Commanders  by  you  to  be  Authorised,  full  Power  and  Au- 
thority to  levy.  Arm,  Muster,  Command  and  Employ  all 
Persons  whatsoever  residing  within  Our  said  Province  and 

31 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Territory  of  the  Massachusets  Bay  in  New  England,  and  as 
occasion  shall  require  to  march  them  from  one  place  to 
another,  or  to  Embark  them  for  resisting  and  withstand- 
ing of  all  Enemies,  Pirates  and  Rebels,  both  at  Land  and 
Sea,  and  such  Forces,  with  their  own  Consent,  or  with  the 
Consent  of  Our  Council  and  Assembly,  to  Transport  to 
any  of  Our  Plantations  in  America,  as  occasion  shall  re- 
quire, for  the  defence  of  the  same,  against  the  invasion  or 
Attempts  of  any  of  Our  Enemies ;  and  such  Enemies, 
Pirates  and  Rebels,  if  occasion  shall  require,  to  pursue  and 
Prosecute  in  or  out  of  the  Limits  of  Our  said  Province,  or 
any  part  thereof;  And  if  it  shall  so  please  God,  them  to 
Vanquish,  Apprehend  and  take,  and  being  taken,  either  ac- 
cording to  Law  to  put  to  Death,  or  keep  and  preserve  alive 
at  your  Discretion. 

We  do  further  give  and  grant  unto  you  full  Power  and 
Authority  to  Erect,  raise  and  Build  within  Our  Province 
and  Territory  aforesaid,  such  and  so  many  Forts,  Platforms, 
Castles  and  Fortifications  as  you  shall  judge  necessary; 
And  the  same  or  any  of  them  to  Fortify  and  furnish  with 
Ordnance  Ammunition  and  all  sorts  of  Arms,  fit  and  neces- 
sary for  the  Security  and  defence  of  Our  said  Province ; 
and  from  time  to  time  to  commit  the  Government  of  the 
same  to  such  Person  or  Persons  as  to  you  shall  seem  meet, 
and  the  said  Forts  and  Fortifications  again  to  demolish  or 
dismantle,  as  may  be  most  convenient;  And  to  do  and 
Execute  all  and  every  other  thing  or  things  which  to  a 
Captain  General  doth  or  ought  of  right  to  belong,  as  fully 
and  amply  as  any  other  Our  Captain  General  doth  or  hath 
usually  done  according  to  the  Powers  hereby  granted  or 
to  be  granted  to  you. 

And  We  do  hereby  give  and  grant  unto  you  the  said 
William  Shirley  full  Power  and  Authority  to  constitute  and 
Appoint  Captains,  Lieutenants,  Masters  and  other  Com- 
manders and  officers  of  Ships,  and  to  grant  unto  such  Cap- 
tains, Lieutenants,  Masters  and  other  Commanders  and 
Officers  of  Ships,  Commissions  to  Execute  the  Law  Martial, 
according  to  the  directions  of  an  Act  pass'd  in  the   13th 

32 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Year  of  the  Reign  of  King  Charles  the  Second,  Entituled, 
An  Act  for  the  better  Establishing  Articles  and  Orders  for  the 
regulating  and  better  Government  of  His  Majesty^ s  Navys, 
Ships  of  fVar,  and  Forces  by  Sea,  and  to  Use  such  Proceed- 
ings, Authorities,  Punishments,  Corrections  and  Execu- 
tions upon  any  Offender  or  Offenders  who  shall  be  Muti- 
nous, Seditious,  Disorderly  or  any  way  unruly,  either  at  Sea 
or  during  the  time  of  their  Abode  or  Residence  in  any  of 
the  Ports,  Harbours  or  Bays  of  Our  said  Province  and 
Territory,  as  the  Cause  shall  be  found  to  require,  accord- 
ing to  Martial  Law,  and  the  said  directions  during  the  time 
of  War,  as  aforesaid. 

Provided  that  nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  con- 
strued to  the  Enabling  you,  or  any  by  your  Authority,  to 
hold  Plea  or  have  Jurisdiction  of  any  Offence,  Cause,  mat- 
ter or  thing  committed  or  done  upon  the  high  Sea,  or  within 
any  of  the  Havens,  Rivers  or  Creeks  of  Our  said  Province 
or  Territories  under  your  Government,  by  any  Captain, 
Commander,  Lieutenant,  Master  or  other  Officer,  Seaman, 
Soldier  or  other  Person  whatsoever,  who  shall  be  in  actual 
Service  or  Pay  in  or  on  Board  any  of  Our  Ships  of  War  or 
other  Vessels,  acting  by  immediate  Commission  or  Warrant 
from  Our  Commissions  for  Executing  the  Office  of  Our 
high  Admiral  or  from  Our  high  Admiral  of  Great  Britain 
for  the  time  being  under  the  Seal  of  Our  Admiralty ;  But 
that  such  Captain,  Commander,  Lieutenant,  Master,  Offi- 
cer, Seaman,  Soldier  or  other  Person  so  Offending  shall  be 
left  to  be  proceeded  against  and  tryed,  as  the  merit  of  their 
Offences  shall  require,  either  by  Commission  under  Our 
Great  Seal  of  Great  Britain  as  the  Statute  of  the  28th  of 
Henry  the  Eighth  directs,  or  by  Commission  from  Our 
said  Commissrs  for  Executing  the  Office  of  Our  High  Ad- 
miral, or  from  Our  high  Admiral  of  Great  Britain  for  the 
time  being,  according  to  the  foremention'd  Act,  Entituled, 
An  Act  for  the  Establishing  Articles  and  Orders  for  the  regu- 
lating and  better  Government  of  His  Majesty'' s  Navys,  Ships 
of  War,  and  Forces  by  Sea,  and  not  otherwise. 

Provided  also  that  all  disorders  and  Misdemeanors  com- 

VOL.  I  —  D  33 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

mitted  on  Shore  by  any  Captain,  Commander,  Lieutenant, 
Master  or  other  Officer,  Seaman,  Soldier  or  other  Person 
whatsoever,  belonging  to  any  of  Our  Ships  of  War,  acting  by 
immediate  Commission  or  Warrant  from  Our  Commis- 
sioners for  Executing  the  Office  of  Our  high  Admiral,  or 
from  Our  high  Admiral  of  Great  Britain  for  the  time  being, 
under  the  Seal  of  Our  Admiralty,  may  be  tryed  and  Punished 
according  to  the  Laws  of  the  Place,  where  any  such  Dis- 
orders, Offences  and  Misdemeanors  shall  be  Committed  on 
Shore,  notwithstanding  such  Offender  be  in  our  actual  Serv- 
ice and  borne  in  our  Pay  on  Board  any  such  Our  Ships  of 
War,  or  other  Vessels  Acting  by  immediate  Commission  or 
Warrant  from  our  Commissioners  for  Executing  the  Office 
of  Our  high  Admiral,  or  from  Our  high  Admiral  of  Great 
Britain  for  the  time  being,  as  aforesaid,  so  as  he  shall  not 
receive  any  protection  for  the  avoiding  of  Justice  for  such 
Offences  committed  on  Shore,  from  any  Pretence  of  his 
being  Employed  in  Our  Service  at  Sea. 

And  further  Our  Will  and  Pleasure  is,  that  you  shall  not 
at  any  time  hereafter  by  Colour  of  any  Power  or  Authority 
hereby  Granted  or  mentioned  to  be  Granted,  take  upon  you 
to  give,  grant  or  dispose  of  any  Office  or  Place  within  Our 
said  Province  and  Territories,  which  now  is,  or  shall  be 
granted,  under  the  great  Seal  of  Great  Britain,  any  further 
than  that  you  may,  upon  the  Vacancy  of  any  such  Office,  or 
suspension  of  any  Officer  by  you,  put  in  any  Person  to  Offi- 
ciate in  the  interval  until  the  said  Place  be  disposed  of  by 
us,  Our  Heirs  or  Successors,  under  the  Great  Seal  of  Great 
Britain,  or  that  Our  directions  be  otherwise  given  therein. 

And  We  do  hereby  require  and  Command  all  Officers  and 
Ministers,  Civil  and  Military,  and  all  other  the  Inhabit- 
ants of  Our  said  Province  and  Territory,  to  be  obedient. 
Aiding  and  Assisting  unto  you  the  said  William  Shirley, 
in  the  Execution  of  this  Our  Commission,  and  of  the  Powers 
and  Authorities  therein  contained,  and  in  Case  of  your 
Death  or  Absence  out  of  Our  said  Province  and  Territories, 
to  be  Obedient,  aiding  and  Assisting  unto  such  Person  as 
shall  be  appointed  by  Us,  to  be  Our  Lieutenant  Governor  or 

34 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Commander  in  Chief  of  Our  said  Province  and  Territories, 
to  whom  We  do  therefore  by  these  Presents  give  and  Grant 
all  and  Singular  the  Powers  and  Authorities  herein  granted, 
to  be  hy  him  Executed  and  Enjoyed  during  Our  Pleasure 
or  until  your  Arrival  within  Our  said  Province. 

And  if  upon  your  Death  or  Absence  out  of  Our  said 
Province,  there  be  no  Person  upon  the  Place  Commisslonated 
or  Appointed  by  Us  to  be  Our  Lieut.  Governor  or  Commander 
in  Chief  of  Our  said  Province  and  Territories,  Our  Will 
and  Pleasure  is,  that  Our  Council  of  Our  said  Province  for 
the  time  being  do  take  upon  them  the  Administration  of 
the  Government,  and  Execute  Our  said  Commission  and 
Instructions  and  the  several  Powers  and  Authorities  therein 
contained,  in  the  same  manner  and  to  all  intents  and  pur- 
poses, as  Our  Governor  or  Commander  in  Chief  of  Our  said 
Province  and  Territories  should  or  ought  to  do,  in  Case 
of  Your  Absence  until  your  return,  or  in  all  Cases  until  Our 
further  pleasure  be  known  therein :  And  that  in  such  Case 
the  Eldest  Councillor  present  at  each  meeting  of  the  said 
Council  shall  always  preside  therein. 

And  Our  Pleasure  is,  that  you  the  said  William  Shirley 
shall  and  may  hold  Execute  and  Enjoy,  the  Office  and 
Place  of  Our  Captain  General  and  Governor  in  Chief  in 
and  over  Our  said  Province  and  Territories  of  the  Massa- 
chusets  Bay  in  New  England,  with  all  and  Singular  the 
Powers  and  Authorities  hereby  granted  unto  you,  for  and 
during  Our  Will  and  Pleasure. 

And  whereas  there  are  divers  Colonies  adjoining  to  Our 
Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  for  the  defence  and  se- 
curity whereof  it  is  requisite  that  due  care  be  taken  in  the 
time  of  War,  We  have  therefore  thought  it  further  neces- 
sary for  Our  Service,  and  for  the  better  Protection  and 
Security  of  Our  Subjects  Inhabiting  those  parts,  to  Consti- 
tute and  appoint,  and  We  do  by  these  Presents,  Constitute 
and  Appoint  you  the  said  William  Shirley  to  be  Our  Cap- 
tain General  and  Commander  in  Chief  of  the  Militia  and 
of  all  the  Forces  by  Sea  and  Land,  within  Our  Colonies  of 
Rhode  Island  and  Providence  Plantation,  the  Narragansett 

35 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Country  or  King's  Province,  and  of  all  Our  Forts  and 
Places  of  Strength  within  the  same,  in  time  of  War  or 
imminent  Danger. 

And  for  the  better  Ordering,  Governing  and  Ruling  Our 
said  Militia,  and  all  Our  Forces,  Forts,  and  Places  of 
Strength,  within  our  said  Colonies  of  Rhode  Island,  and 
Providence  Plantation,  and  the  Narragansett  Country  or 
King's  Province,  We  do  hereby  give  and  Grant  unto  You 
the  said  William  Shirley  and  in  your  Absence  to  Our  Lieu- 
tenant Governor  or  Commander  in  Chief  of  Our  said 
Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  all  and  every  the 
like  Powers  as  in  these  presents  are  before  Granted  and 
Recited  for  the  Ruling,  Governing  and  Ordering  Our  Mili- 
tia and  all  Our  Forces,  Forts  and  Places  of  Strength,  within 
Our  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  to  be  Exercised  by 
you  the  said  William  Shirley,  and  in  your  Absence  from  Our 
Territory  and  Dominion  of  New  England,  by  Our  said 
Lieutenant  Governor  or  Commander  in  Chief  of  Our  said 
Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  for  the  time  being,  within 
Our  said  Colonies  of  Rhode  Island  and  Providence  Planta- 
tion and  the  Narraganset  Country  or  King's  Province,  dur- 
ing the  time  of  War  or  imminent  Danger  as  aforesaid. 

In  witness  whereof  We  have  Caused  these  Our  Letters  to 
be  made  Patents,  Witness  Our  Self  at  Westminster  the  [25th] 
day  of  [June  1741]^  in  the  fourteenth  Year  of  Our  Reign. 
Endorsed : 

Draught  of  a  Commission 

to  William  Shirley  Esqr.  to  be  Governor 
of  the  Massachusets  Bay. 
July  10,  174^. 
June  25.  1741. 

^  Shirley's  commission  as  governor  appears  to  have  been  ap- 
proved by  the  Privy  Council  on  May  6,  1741.  The  formal  date 
attached  to  the  writing  was,  as  shown  by  the  indorsement  and  the 
text,  first  set  as  July  10  and  later  changed  to  June  25,  1741.  The 
endeavor  to  induce  the  Privy  Council  to  allow  Shirley  to  assent 
to  measures  providing  for  free  issuance  of  Bills  of  Credit  continued 
from  May,  1740,  well  into  July,  1741.  In  1730  Governor  Belcher 
had  been  granted  power  to  consent  to  an  emission  of  £30,000 

36 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


FRANCES   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 
My  Lord  Duke, 

I  have  lately  heard  of  an  Opportunity  of  returning  to 
America.  I  am  much  asham'd  I  have  not  Personaly  re- 
turn'd  your  Grace  thanks  for  your  Goodness  to  us  but  I 
have  hitherto  Omitted  it  for  fear  I  shou'd  pitch  upon  an 
Improper  Hour  and  I  thought  it  better  to  Omit  that  part 
of  my  Duty  than  be  troublesome. 

Mr.  Western  Informs  me  that  your  Grace  seems  to  think 
that  we  wou'd  desire  Mr.  Pemberton  Naval  Officer  for  Bos- 
ton shou'd  be  put  out  of  a  place  wch  he  appears  to  have  a 
right  to.  I  think  my  selfe  Oblig'd  in  my  own  Justification 
to  Inform  your  Grace  that  I  apprehend  Mr.  Pemberton  to  be 
now  Actualy  out  for  as  soon  as  Mr.  Shirleys  Commission 
Arrives  no  act  of  Mr.  Pembertons  will  be  good  so  that  Mr. 
Shirley  must  be  Oblig'd  to  appoint  sombody  to  that  Post 
for  Mr.  Belchers  Appointment  of  him  reaches  no  farther 
than  the  time  of  his  Govt :  and  I  am  told  that  even  dureing 
that  time  he  cou'd  have  turn'd  him  out  by  the  Manner  of  his 
Appointing  him  a  Coppy  of  wch  I  can  procure  and  send 
your  Grace  if  you  please  to  Command  me.  I  am  in  some  pain 
least  Mr.  Shirley  seeing  it  in  this  light  (if  he  has  not  your 
Graces  Commands  to  the  Contrary)  shou'd  by  this  time  have 
put  his  Son  into  the  Naval  Office  for  I  think  it  Natural  to  sup- 
pose that  if  Mr.  Shirley  must  appoint  a  Naval  Officer  it  will 

annually.  This  power  was  continued  to  Shirley  by  Committee 
on  Aug.  7,  by  the  Privy  Council  itself  on  Sept.  8,  and  the  In- 
structions of  Sept,  lo,  1741,  forbid  the  increase  of  this  limit  {post, 
p.  47).  No  more  could  be  issued  without  the  consent  of  the  king. 
For  an  instance  of  this  permission  see  Instructions  to  Shirley, 
Sept.  9,  1744,  post,  p.  144.  On  Aug.  23,  1741,  Shirley  acknowledged 
the  receipt  of  his  appointment  as  governor  and  in  a  lengthy  letter 
to  Newcastle  gives  details  of  the  circumstances  of  the  colony  and 
the  difficulties  arising  over  the  settlement  of  his  salary.  The  letter 
is  in  C.  O.  5,  900,  I. 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  326g7,  282.  A  transcript  is  in 
the  Library  of  Congress. 

37 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

be  his  Son.  If  that  shou'd  be  the  Case  and  I  might  presume 
to  aske  a  Favour  in  Addition  to  your  late  Goodness  it  shou'd 
be  that  your  Grace  wou'd  not  Oblige  him  to  turn  his  Son  out 
again  for  in  that  Case  it  will  not  only  be  this  loss  of  a  Provi- 
sion for  our  Son  but  wou'd  lessen  Mr.  Shirley  very  much  in 
the  Eyes  of  the  People  if  they  shou'd  see  Mr.  Pemberton  a 
man  who  is  held  so  very  Cheap  by  them  prefer'd  to  the  son  of 
Mr.  Shirley  who  they  wou'd  wish  shou'd  have  a  better  In- 
terest with  your  Grace.  As  to  Mr.  Shirleys  haveing  any  pre- 
tence of  right  to  dispose  of  this  place  I  am  sure  he  will  readily 
submit  to  your  Grace  and  I  dare  say  it  will  give  him  more 
pleasure  to  receive  it  as  a  mark  of  your  Graces  Favour 
than  to  think  it  his  right.  I  thought  it  my  Duty  to  set  this 
affair  in  as  true  a  light  as  I  cou'd  and  I  am  not  without  hopes 
that  when  your  Grace  Considers  how  much  the  Govt :  is 
lessen'd,  how  large  our  Family  and  the  Extraordinary  ex- 
pence  we  must  be  at  in  our  way  of  liveing,  you  will  bestow 
this  provission  on  my  Son.  Thus  far  I  presume  to  beg  but 
however  your  Grace  shall  determine  I  shall  AUways  Ac- 
knowledge that  whatever  we  Injoy  of  the  goods  of  this  World 
it  is  Intirely  oweing  to  your  Graces  goodness  and  Com- 
passion to  an  unfortunate  Family  and  I  hope  your  Grace 
will  believe  that  I  shall  allways  be  with  the  greatest  Grati- 
tude and  thankfullness 

My  Lord  Duke  your  Graces  Most 

Oblig'd  most  Obedient  and 
Most  Humble   Servant 

Cobham,  July  the  sth,  1741.  ^'  Shirley. 

THE    LORDS   OF   TRADE   TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 
My  Lord, 

Having  prepared  a  Draught  of  general  Instructions, 
as  likewise  of  those,  which  relate  to  the  Acts  of  Trade  and 
Navigation,,  for  Williamx  Shirley,  Esqr.  whom  his  Majesty 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5, 199,  123.     A  transcript  is  in  the  Library  of 

Congress. 

38 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

has  been  pleased  to  appoint  Governor  of  the  Massachusets 
Bay,  We  take  Leave  to  inclose  the  said  Draughts  to  your 
Grace,  together  with  Our  Representation  thereupon,  and  to 
desire  Your  Grace  will  be  pleased  to  lay  the  same  before 
Their  Excellencies  the  Lords  Justices.^  We  are, 
My  Lord, 

Your    Grace's 

most  Obedient  and 
most  humble  Servts  : 

MONSON 

M.  Bladen 
Whitehall, 


July  :  22d  :  1741 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 


R.  Plumer. 
B.  Keene 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE  OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

Boston,  Augt.  23,  1741. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

'  On  Thursday  se'nnight  I  had  the  Honour  of  receiving 
his  Majy's  Commission  appointing  me  his  Governour  of 
this  Province,  wch  I  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  publish'd 
with  as  full  &  Genl  a  Testimony  of  the  people's  good  Will 
(Mr  Belcher's  best  wishers  not  excepted)  as  I  could  rea- 
sonably expect  or  desire ;  one  instance  of  wch  appears  in  the 
present  made  me  by  both  Houses  of  the  Genl  Court  in  the 
most  unanimous  manner,  towards  defraying  the  Expense 
of  my  Equipage  &c.,  of  a  Larger  Sum  than  what  was  ever 
granted  before  upon  the  like  Occasion  ;  and  that  done  when  I 
was  upon  the  Spot  at  the  time  of  my  nomination,  and  of  the 
Arrival  of  his  Majy's  Commission. 

What  Duty  and  Gratitude  are  owing  from  me  to  yr  Grace 
for  this  Dispensation  of  his  Majy's  favour,  if  I  could  fully  ex- 
press the  sentiments  of  my  Heart  in  words,  I  should  be 
able  to  declare  here ;    But  as  those  would  fall  short  of  doing 

^  See  Instructions  of  Sept.  10,  p.  43  following. 
2P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  I. 
39 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

It,  I  shall  instead  of  attempting  it,  give  your  Grace  the 
utmost  assurances  of  my  best  Endeavours  to  discharge  my 
Duty  to  his  Majesty  in  the  most  beneficial  manner  for  the 
Country,  wch  I  am  satisfy'd  will  be  the  most  acceptable 
acknowledgmts,  I  can  make  to  yr  Grace  for  all  yr  goodness 
to  my  family. 

I  am  sensible.  My  Lord  Duke,  that  I  am  now  entring  upon 
the  Governmt  of  a  province,  where  Col.  Shute  quitted  the 
Chair,  &  Mr  Burnett  broke  his  heart  thro  the  Temper  and 
Opposition  of  the  people ;  &  Mr  Belcher  in  the  midst  of  his 
Countrymen  fail'd  of  carrying  any  one  of  those  points  for 
the  Crown,  wch  might  have  been  expected  from  him ;  and 
that  I  enter  upon  it  at  a  time,  when  an  empty  Treasury,  an 
Aversion  in  the  House  of  Representatives  to  supply  it 
conformably  to  his  Majy's  last  Instruction;  a  weak  and 
Ruinous  Condition  of  their  Fortifications,  a  bad  Spirit 
rais'd  throughout  the  Country  by  the  Land  Bank  Scheme, 
by  means  of  it's  being  conniv'd  at  here  in  it's  first  rise,  re- 
maining uncheck'd  so  long,  that  the  imprudt  manner  of  en- 
deavouring to  check  it  here  afterwards  by  those  who  were 
at  the  same  time  endeavouring  to  support  &  countenance  it 
at  home  thro  Mr  Partridge,  only  inflamed  it ;  &  Mr  Belch- 
er's constant  acceptance  from  year  to  year  of  a  Diminished 
Salary,  after  he  had  obtain'd  leave  to  take  it  without  in- 
sisting upon  his  Majesty's  Instruction  on  that  head,  the 
value  of  wch  is  by  that  means  sunk  from  abt  loool.  Sterl. 
wch  had  been  allow'd  by  the  Genl  Court  to  Governr  Bur- 
nett and  himself  wth  a  promise  to  the  former  of  'em  to  continue 
as  ample  an  Allowance,  down  to  the  Value  of  650I.  Sterl. 
wch  seems  to  have  been  done  by  him  with  some  particular 
View  of  his  own,  to  secure  his  station  by  the  smallness  of 
his  Salary ;  are  what  make  up  the  present  Scene  of  Affairs 
in  the  province,  whereupon  the  House  of  Representatives 
tell  me  in  their  Address,  that  they  are  concern'd  my  Accession 
to  the  Chair  should  be  attended  with  such  Difficulties. 

I  would  not  have  troubled  yr  Grace  with  this  Detail  of  the 
Circumstances  of  the  province  (wch  yet  I  shall  not  despair 
of  wading  through  in  some  measure  by  the  help  of  Patience 

40 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

and  Moderation)  if  I  was  not  fearfull  that,  as  some  Dis- 
putes with  the  Country  seem  unavoidable  for  the  service  of 
the  Crown,  particularly  with  regard  to  the  present  state  of 
the  Salary,  wch  if  not  brought  up  again  now  to  the  Sum 
order'd  by  his  Majy,  and  formerly  conceded  by  the  Genl 
Court,  will  be  endeavour'd  to  be  reduc'd  yet  lower,  your  Grace 
might,  when  you  should  find  me  so  early  engag'd  in  any 
Dispute,  think  it  might  proceed  from  Rashness  &  Indiscre- 
tion on  my  part,  wch  I  shall  always  most  carefully  avoid,  and 
whatever  Disputes  the  Province  may  have  with  the  Crown,  I 
shall  ever  decline  being  drawn  into  a  personal  Quarrell  with  it. 
I  would  further  beg  leave  to  mention  to  yr  Grace,  that  as 
there  seems  to  be  a  certainty  of  my  not  being  able  to  receive 
a  penny  of  my  Salary  for  a  considerable  time  ;  so  that  I  must 
remain  all  that  while  without  Support  in  his  Majy's  Service, 
except  from  the  fees  &  perquisites  of  the  Governmt,  wch  I  be- 
lieve are  under  the  value  of  lool  sterl  pr  annum,  I  am  oblig'd 
to  appoint  my  son  Clerk  of  the  Naval  Office,  that  I  may  have 
some  support  from  thence,  wch  I  would  not  otherwise  have 
done  without  first  having  obtain'd  yr  Grace's  leave  for  it ; 
and  there  was  a  necessity  for  me  to  appoint  some  Clerk  im- 
mediately, unless  I  would  have  executed  the  Post  myself 
(as  I  may  do  by  virtue  of  the  Act  of  Parliamt,  and  did  for  a 
few  days)  by  reason  that  Mr  Pemberton's  Appointment 
by  Mr  Belcher,  wch  was  only  during  his  pleasure  (not  the 
King's)  expir'd  with  his  principal's  Commission,  so  that 
Mr  Pemberton  could  not  have  acted  in  that  Office  without 
a  new  appointment  from  me  to  be  my  Clerk  of  it ;  Wherefore 
as  the  Service  of  the  Crown  really  required  the  appointmt 
wch  I  have  made,  in  order  to  support  myself  in  the  Discharge 
of  my  Duty ;  and  the  way  was  clear  for  doing  it,  the  Clerk- 
ship being  vacant  by  the  Expiration  of  Mr  Pemberton's 
appointment,  wch  he  had  accepted  from  Govr  Belcher, 
with  his  principal's  Commission,  without  my  removal  of 
him ;  and  I  am  in  a  worse  plight  to  combat  wth  the  Diffi- 
culties of  the  Governmt  than  his  Majy's  three  former  Govrs 
were,  who  held  the  Governmt  of  New  Hampshire  with  the 
Governmt  of  this  Province,  wch  is  now  put  under  a  separate 

41 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Govt  ;  and  the  full  Salary,  fees,  and  profits  of  both  Governmts 
united  under  one  Govr  were  but  a  scanty  Allowance  for 
supporting  the  Dignity  and  Honour  of  his  Majy's  Governmt, 
and  Provision  for  a  Govr,  and  his  family,  when  large.  I  am  in 
hopes  that  your  Grace  under  these  Circumstances  will  not  be 
displeas'd  with  what  I  have  done,  but  permit  me  to  hold  the 
Governmt  with  the  same  Extent  of  all  it's  perquisites,  wch 
preceeding  Governrs  held  it  with,  even  when  N.  Hamp- 
shire Governmt  was  join'd  with  it,  'till  Mr  Pemberton 
brought  an  Order  from  his  Majy  commanding  Mr.  Belcher  *- 
to  appoint  him  Clerk  of  the  Naval  Office ;  especially  as 
Mr  Pemberton  has  had  the  full  Effect  of  that  Order  in  the 
manner  wch  he  thought  fit  to  accept  it  in  from  Mr  Belcher, 
tho  not  so  full  as  the  Terms  of  the  Order ;  and  Mr  Pemberton 
has  receiv'd  at  least  treble  as  much  as  all  the  Losses  pretended 
to  have  been  sustain'd  by  him  from  the  French,  when  he 
obtain'd  his  Majesty's  Order  to  Mr  Belcher,  amounted  to; 
two  thirds  of  wch  losses  are  well  known  here  to  have  been 
sustain'd  by  Merchts  now  living  here,  and  all  of  'em  sustained 
by  means  of  a  Contreband  Trade  :  But  I  pretend  to  noth- 
ing more  in  this  Aifair,  than  what  yr  Grace's  Goodness  will 
be  pleas'd  to  allow  me,  by  wch  Tenure  I  desire  to  hold  every- 
thing I  have,  as  my  best  Claim  &  Title ;  and  will  upon  the 
least  signification  of  yr  Grace's  pleasure  that  it  shall  be  so, 
appoint  Mr  Pemberton,  and  remove  my  son,  without  any 
further  Commands. 

In  the  mean  time  that  Mr  Pemberton,  whose  whole  family 
consists  of  himself  and  his  Wife  without  any  prospect  of  hav- 
ing a  child,  may  not  be  put  to  Difficulty  in  his  Circumstances, 
I  shall  offer  him  a  Post  of  the  reputed  Value  of  4  or  500I  a 
year,  New  England  Money,  in  the  County  where  he  chooses 
to  live,  viz.  the  post  of  Sheriff  of  the  County,  or  one  better, 
wch  he  shall  be  put  into  possession  of  at  present,  if  he 
will  accept  of  it,  and  design  to  add  something  more  to  it, 
when  I  shall  have  a  fair  Opportunity  of  doing  it;  tho  I 
don't  know  that  his  Circumstances  require  it. 

That  his  Majesty  &  yr  Country  may  long  be  blessed  with 
yr  Grace's  Services,  and  that  yr  Grace  may  long  continue  an 

42 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Honour  to  the  Administration,  &  the  Object  of  every  good 
man's  Esteem  &  Love,  is  the  ardent  Wish  &  prayer  of  him, 
who  wth  the  most  grateful!  Sense  of  all  yr  Grace's  Goodness 
to  him  is, 

My  Lord  Duke 

Yr  Grace's  most  Devoted 

&  most  Obedt  Humble  Servt 

W.  Shirley. 
Endorsed: 

Boston  Augt  23.  1741 

Governor  Shirley. 
%.  Oct.  14th 


THE  LORDS  JUSTICES  TO  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY^ 

[General  Instructions] 

By  the  Lords  Justices 


Jo.  Cant 

Grafton 

Richmond,  Lenox,  and  Aubigny 

Montagu 

Hay.  -     \ 


Instructions  to  William 
Shirley  Esqr.  His  Majes- 
ty's Captain  General  and 
Governor  in  Chief  in  and 
over  the  Province  and  Ter- 
ritory of  the  Massachusets 
Bay  in  New  England,  in 
America.  Given  at  White- 
hall the  loth  Day  of 
September  1741  in  the 
Fifteenth  Year  of  His 
Majesty's  Reign. ^  — 
First.  With  these  His  Majesty's  Instructions  You  will 
receive   His    Commission   under   the   Great    Seal   of    Great 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  199,  127-168.  A  transcript  Is  in  the  Library 
of  Congress.     The  Instructions  were  received  Jan.  16,  post,  p.  79. 

^  The  names  of  the  Lords  Justices  and  the  date  and  place  of 
signature  are  in  a  different  hand  from  the  remainder  of  the  manu- 
script. 

43 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Britain,  Constituting  You  Captain  General  and  Governor  In 
Chief  in  and  over  His  Majesty's  Province  of  the  Massa- 
chusets  Bay,  and  likewise  Captain  General  and  Commander 
in  Chief  of  the  Militia,  and  of  all  the  Forces  by  sea  and  Land 
within  the  Colonies  of  Rhode  Island,  Providence  Plantation 
and  the  Narraganset  Country  or  King's  Province  in  New 
England,  and  of  the  Forts  and  Places  of  Strength  within 
the  same ;  You  are  therefore  to  fit  your  self  with  all  con- 
venient Speed,  and  to  repair  to  the  said  Province  of  the 
Massachusets  Bay ;  And  being  arrived  there.  You  are  to 
take  upon  you  the  Execution  of  the  Place  and  Trust  His 
Majesty  has  reposed  in  You,  and  forthwith  to  call  together 
the  Members  of  His  Majesty's  Council  in  that  Province. 

2.  You  are  with  all  due  and  usual  Solemnity  to  cause 
His  Majesty's  said  Commission  to  be  read  and  published 
at  the  said  Meeting,  and  Notification  to  be  also  given  to 
His  Majesty's  Colonies  of  Rhode  Island,  Providence  Planta- 
tion, and  the  Narraganset  Country,  of  the  Power  wherewith 
You  are  intrusted  concerning  the  Militia,  Forces  and  Forts 
within  the  said  Colonies  and  Country,  as  aforesaid ;  which 
being  done,  you  shall  then  take  and  also  Administer  unto 
each  of  the  Members  of  the  said  Council  the  Oaths  appointed 
to  be  taken  by  An  Act  passed  in  the  first  Year  of  His  late 
Majesty's  Reign,  Entituled  An  Act  for  the  further  Security 
of  His  Majesty'' s  Person  and  Government  and  the  Succession 
of  the  Crown  in  the  Heirs  of  the  Late  Princess  Sophia  being 
Protestants,  and  for  Extinguishing  the  Hopes  of  the  Pretended 
Prince  of  Wales  and  his  open  and  Secret  Abettors,  as  also  make 
and  Subscribe,  and  cause  them  to  make  and  Subscribe,  the 
Declaration  mention'd  in  An  Act  of  Parliament  made  in 
the  25th  Year  of  the  Reign  of  King  Charles  the  Second 
Entituled,  An  Act  for  preventing  Dangers  which  may  happen 
from  Popish  Recusants,  together  with  an  Oath  for  the  due 
Execution  of  Your  and  Their  Places  and  Trusts,  as  well 
with  regard  to  the  equal  and  impartial  Administration 
of  Justice,  in  all  Causes  that  shall  come  before  you,  as 
in  all  other  Matters ;  And  you  are  likewise  to  take  the 
Oath  required  to  be  taken  by  Governors  of    Plantations, 

44 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

to  do  their  utmost  that  the  Laws  relating  to  the  Planta- 
tions be  observed. 

3.  You  are  forthwith  to  communicate  unto  the  said 
Council  such  and  so  many  of  these  Instructions,  wherein 
their  Advice  and  Consent  are  mention'd  to  be  requisite,  as 
likewise  all  such  others  from  time  to  time  as  you  shall  find 
convenient  for  His  Majesty's  Service  to  be  imparted  to  them. 

4.  You  are  to  permit  the  Members  of  the  said  Council  to 
have  and  Enjoy  Freedom  of  Debate,  and  Vote  in  all  Affairs 
of  publick  Concern,  that  may  be  debated  in  Council. 

5.  You  are  from  time  to  time  to  send  to  His  Majesty 
by  one  of  His  Principal  Secretarys  of  State,  and  to  His 
Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations,  the  Names  and 
Qualities  of  the  Members  appointed  to  be  of  the  said  Council 
by  the  first  Convenience  after  such  Appointment. 

6.  And  in  the  Choice  and  Appointment  of  the  Members  of 
the  said  Council,  and  also  of  the  principal  Officers,  Judges, 
Justices,  Sherrlfs  and  others ;  You  are  always  to  take  Care 
that  they  be  Men  of  good  life,  and  well  affected  to  His 
Majesty's  Government,  and  of  good  Estates  and  Abilities, 
and  not  necessitous  Persons. 

7.  You  are  to  Observe  in  the  passing  of  all  Laws,  that 
the  Style  of  enacting  the  same  be,  by  the  Governor,  Council, 
and  House  of  Representatives,  and  no  other.  You  are 
also  as  much  as  possible  to  observe  in  the  passing  of  all 
Laws,  that  whatever  may  be  requisite  upon  each  different 
Matter,  be  accordingly  provided  for,  by  a  different  Law, 
without  intermixing  in  one  and  the  same  Act,  such  things 
as  have  no  proper  relation  to  each  other ;  And  you  are  more 
especially  to  take  Care  that  no  Clause  or  Clauses  be  Inserted 
in,  or  annexed  to  any  Act,  which  shall  be  foreign  to  what  the 
Title  of  such  respective  Act  Imports  ;  And  that  no  perpetual 
Clause  be  part  of  any  temporary  Law ;  And  that  no  Act 
whatever  be  Suspended,  Altered,  Revived,  Continued  or 
Repealed  by  general  Words ;  But  that  the  Title  and  Date 
of  such  Act  so  Suspended,  Altered,  Revived,  Continued 
or  Repealed  be  particularly  mentioned  and  expressed  in  the 
Enacting  part. 

45 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

8.  You  are  to  take  Care  that  in  all  Acts  or  Orders  to  be 
passed  within  that  His  Majesty's  Province  in  any  case 
for  the  Levying  Money  or  imposing  Fines  and  Penalties, 
express  mention  be  made  that  the  same  is  granted  or  re- 
served to  His  Majesty,  His  Heirs  and  Successors,  to  the 
publick  Uses  of  that  Province,  and  the  support  of  the  Govern- 
ment thereof,  as  by  the  said  Act  or  Order  shall  be  directed. 
And  you  are  particularly  not  to  pass  any  Law,  or  do  any 
Act  by  Grant,  Settlement  or  otherwise  whereby  His  Maj- 
esty's Revenue  may  be  lessened  or  Impaired  without  His 
Majesty's  especial  Leave  or  Command  therein. 

9.  And  you  are  not  to  permit  any  Clause  whatsoever  to 
be  inserted  in  any  Law  for  levying  Money  or  the  Value  of 
Money,  whereby  the  same  shall  not  be  made  liable  to  be 
accounted  for  to  His  Majesty  and  to  His  Commissioners 
of  the  Treasury  or  the  High  Treasurer  for  the  time  being; 
And  Audited  by  the  Auditor-General  of  the  Plantations, 
or  his  Deputy  for  the  time  being.  And  His  Majesty  does 
hereby  particularly  require  and  enjoyn  you,  upon  pain  of 
His  Highest  Displeasure  to  take  Care  that  fair  Books  of 
Accounts  of  all  Receipts,  and  Payments  of  all  publick 
Moneys  be  duly  kept,  and  the  Truth  thereof  attested  upon 
Oath,  and  that  the  said  Books  be  transmitted  every  half  year 
or  oftner  to  His  Majesty's  Commissioners  of  the  Treasury, 
or  High  Treasurer  for  the  time  being  and  to  the  Commission- 
ers for  Trade  and  Plantations,  and  Duplicates  thereof  by 
the  next  Conveyance ;  In  which  Books  shall  be  specified 
every  particular  sum  raised  or  disposed  of,  together  with  the 
Names  of  the  Persons  to  whom  any  Payment  shall  be  made, 
to  the  End  His  Majesty  may  be  Satisfied  of  the  right  and 
due  Application  of  the  Revenue  of  the  said  Province,  with 
the  Probability  of  the  Increase  or  Diminution  of  it  under 
every  Head  or  Article  thereof. 

10.  And  it  is  His  Majesty's  express  Will  and  Pleasure, 
That  no  Law  for  raising  any  Imposition  on  Wines  or  other 
Strong  Liquors  be  made  to  continue  for  less  than  one  whole 
Year;  As  also  that  all  other  Laws  whatsoever  for  the  good 
Government  and  Support  of    the  said  Province,  be  made 

46 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Indefinite  and  without  Limitation  of  time ;  except  the  same 
be  for  a  Temporary  service,  and  which  shall  expire  and  have 
its  full  Effect  within  the  Time  therein  prefixt. 

11.  And  whereas  Laws  have  formerly  been  Enacted  in 
Several  of  His  Majesty's  Plantations  in  America  for  so 
short  a  time,  that  the  Royal  Assent  or  Refusal  thereof 
could  not  be  had  thereupon,  before  the  time  for  which  such 
Laws  were  enacted,  did  Expire ;  You  shall  not  therefore 
give  your  Assent  to  any  Law  that  shall  be  enacted  for  a  less 
time  than  two  Years,  except  in  the  Cases  mention'd  in  the 
foregoing  Article.  And  You  shall  not  Re-enact  any  Law  to 
which  the  Assent  of  His  Majesty  or  His  Royal  Predecessors 
has  once  been  refused,  without  express  Leave  for  that 
purpose  first  obtained  from  His  Majesty  upon  a  full  Rep- 
resentation by  you,  to  be  made  to  His  Majesty  and  to  His 
Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations  of  the  Reason  and 
Necessity  for  passing  such  Law,  nor  give  your  Assent  to  any 
Law  for  repealing  any  other  Law  passed  in  your  Government 
whether  the  same  has  or  has  not  received  the  Royal  Ap- 
probation, unless  you  take  Care  that  there  be  a  Clause  in- 
serted therein,  suspending  and  deferring  the  Execution 
thereof  until  His  Majesty's  Pleasure  shall  be  known  con- 
cerning the  same. 

12.  Whereas  Acts  have  been  passed  in  some  of  His 
Majesty's  Plantations  in  America  for  Striking  Bills  of  Credit 
and  issuing  out  the  same  in  lieu  of  money  in  order  to  dis- 
charge their  publick  Debts  and  for  other  Purposes,  from 
whence  several  Inconveniencies  have  arisen,  It  is  therefore 
His  Majesty's  Will  and  Pleasure,  that  you  do  not  give  your 
Assent  to,  or  pass  any  Act  in  the  said  Province  of  the  Massa- 
chusets  Bay  under  your  Government,  whereby  Bills  of 
Credit  may  be  Struck  or  issued  in  lieu  of  Money,  without  a 
Clause  be  inserted  in  such  Act  declaring  that  the  same 
shall  not  take  effect,  until  the  said  Act  shall  have  been 
approved  and  confirmed  by  His  Majesty,  His  Heirs  or 
Successors,  except  only  for  the  Annual  Support  and  Service 
of  the  Government  not  exceeding  Thirty  thousand  pounds 
in  such  Paper  Bills  and  this  Permission  to  continue  only 

47 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

until  His  Majestys  further  Pleasure  shall  be  known  there- 
upon, And  you  are  to  take  especial  care  that  no  more  than 
Thirty  thousand  pounds  of  such  Bills  be  ever  Current  at 
One  and  the  same  time. 

13.  And  whereas  An  Act  of  Parliament  was  passed  in  the 
6th  Year  of  her  late  Majesty  Queen  Anne,  Entituled,  An 
Act  for  ascertaining  the  Rates  of  foreign  Coins  in  Her  Majesty's 
Plantations  in  America,  which  Act  the  respective  Governors 
of  all  the  Plantations  in  America  have,  from  time  to  time  been 
instructed  to  observe  and  carry  into  due  Execution ;  And 
whereas  notwithstanding  the  same.  Complaints  have  been 
made  that  the  said  Act  has  not  been  Observed  as  it  ought 
to  have  been,  in  many  of  His  Majesty's  Colonies  and  Plan- 
tations in  America,  by  means  whereof  many  indirect  Prac- 
tices have  grown  up,  and  various  and  illegal  Currencies 
have  been  introduced  in  Several  of  the  said  Colonies  and 
Plantations,  contrary  to  the  true  Intent  and  meaning  of  the 
said  Act,  and  to  the  Prejudice  of  the  Trade  of  His  Majesty's 
Subjects :  It  is  therefore  His  Majesty's  Royal  Will  and 
Pleasure,  and  you  are  hereby  strictly  required  and  Com- 
manded under  Pain  of  His  Majesty's  highest  Displeasure 
and  of  being  removed  from  your  Government,  to  take  the 
most  effectual  Care  for  the  future  that  the  said  Act  be 
punctually  and  bona  fide  observed  and  put  in  Execution, 
according  to  the  true  Intent  and  meaning  thereof. 

14.  And  it  is  His  Majesty's  further  Will  and  Pleasure, 
that  you  do  not  give  your  Assent  to,  or  pass  any  Act  in 
the  said  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay  under  your 
Government  for  any  Grants  or  Payments  of  an  Extraordinary 
Nature  either  to  you  the  Governor  or  to  any  Lieut.  Governor 
or  Commander  in  Chief,  or  to  any  of  the  Members  of  the 
Councih  or  House  of  Representatives  or  to  any  other  person 
whatsoever,  without  a  Clause  be  likewise  inserted  in  such 
Act  declaring  that  the  same  shall  not  take  Effect  until  the 
said  Act  shall  have  been  approved  and  confirmed  by  His 
Majesty,  His  Heirs  or  Successors. 

15.  And  whereas  His  Majesty  is  Informed  that  several 
Bills  of  Credit  to  a  considerable  Value,  are  already  issued 

48 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

and  standing  out  upon  the  foot  of  certain  Acts  heretofore 
passed  for  that  purpose  whereby  particular  Funds  are 
provided  for  the  calling  in,  and  Sinking  them ;  You  are 
hereby  especially  directed  to  take  Care  that  the  said  Bills 
heretofore  issued  be  called  in  and  Sunk  according  to  the 
Periods  and  Provisions  of  the  respective  Acts  by  which 
they  were  Issued. 

i6.  And  Whereas  great  Mischiefs  may  arise  by  passing 
Bills  of  unusual  and  extraordinary  Nature  and  Importance 
in  the  Plantations  which  Bills  remain  in  force  there  from  the 
time  of  Enacting  until  His  Majesty's  Pleasure  be  signified 
to  the  contrary;  His  Majesty  does  hereby  Will  and  require 
you  not  to  pass  or  give  your  Assent  to  any  Bill  or  Bills  in 
the  Assembly  of  the  said  Province  of  unusual  or  extraordi- 
nary Nature  and  Importance  wherein  His  Majesty's  Preroga- 
tive or  the  Property  of  His  Subjects  may  be  prejudiced,  the 
Trade  or  Shipping  of  this  Kingdom  any  ways  affected,  until 
you  shall  have  first  transmitted  to  His  Majesty  the  Draught 
of  such  a  Bill  or  Bills,  and  shall  have  received  His  Royal 
Pleasure  thereupon,  unless  you  take  care  in  the  passing  of 
any  Bill  of  such  Nature  as  beforemention'd,  that  there 
be  a  Clause  inserted  therein,  Suspending  and  deferring  the 
Execution  thereof  until  His  Majty's  Pleasure  shall  be  known 
concerning  the  same.  And  It  is  His  Majesty's  Express 
Will  and  Pleasure  that  no  Duty  be  laid  in  the  Province 
under  your  Government  upon  British  Shipping  or  upon 
the  Product  or  Manufactures  of  Great  Britain,  and  that  you 
do  not,  upon  pain  of  His  Majesty's  highest  Displeasure, 
give  your  Assent  to  any  Law  whatever,  wherein  the  Natives 
or  Inhabitants  of  the  Province  under  your  Government  are 
put  on  a  more  Advantageous  footing  than  those  of  this 
Kingdom. 

17.  You  are  to  take  Care  that  no  private  Act  be  passed 
whereby  the  Property  of  any  private  Person  may  be  affected, 
in  which  there  is  not  a  Saving  of  the  Right  of  His  Majesty, 
His  Heirs  and  Successors,  all  Bodies  Politick  or  Corporate, 
and  of  all  other  Persons  except  such  as  are  mentioned  in  the 
said  Act,  and  those  claiming  by,  from  or  under  them ;   And 

VOL.  I  —  E  49 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

further  you  shall  take  Care  that  no  private  Act  be  passed 
without  a  Clause  suspending  the  Execution  thereof,  until 
the  same  shall  have  received  His  Majesty's  Royal  Approba- 
tion ;  It  is  likewise  His  Majesty's  Will  and  Pleasure,  that 
you  do  not  give  your  Assent  to  any  private  Act  until  Proof 
be  made  before  you  in  Council  (and  entered  in  the  Council 
Books)  that  publick  Notification  was  made  of  the  Partys 
Intention  to  apply  for  such  Act  in  the  several  Parish  Churches 
where  the  Premises  in  Question  lye,  for  three  Sundays  at 
least  Successively  before  any  such  Act  shall  be  brought 
into  the  Assembly ;  And  that  a  Certificate  under  your  Hand 
be  transmitted  with  and  annexed  to  every  such  private  Act, 
signifying  that  the  same  has  passed  thro  all  the  Forms  above 
mentioned. 

1 8.  You  are  to  transmit  Authentick  Copies  of  all  Laws, 
Statutes  and  Ordinances  that  are  now  made,  and  in  force, 
which  have  not  yet  been  sent,  or  which  at  any  time  hereafter 
shall  be  made  or  enacted  within  the  said  Province,  each  of 
them  separately  under  the  publick  Seal,  unto  His  Majesty 
and  to  His  said  Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations, 
within  three  Months,  or  by  the  first  Opportunity  after 
their  being  Enacted,  together  with  Duplicates  thereof  by 
the  next  Conveyance,  upon  pain  of  His  Majesty's  Highest 
Displeasure,  and  of  the  Forfeiture  of  that  Year's  Salary 
wherein  you  shall  at  any  time,  or  upon  any  Pretence  what- 
soever omit  to  send  over  the  said  Laws,  Statutes,  and  Ordi- 
nances, as  aforesaid,  within  the  time  above  limited  ;  As  also, 
of  such  other  Penalty  as  His  Majesty  shall  please  to  Inflict. 
And  you  are  hereby  directed  to  take  Care,  that  the  Copies 
and  Duplicates  of  the  said  Acts  be  fairly  abstracted  in  the 
Margins,  but  if  it  shall  happen  that  no  Shipping  shall  come 
from  the  said  Province  within  three  Months  after  the  making 
such  Laws,  Statutes  and  Ordinances  whereby  the  same  may 
be  transmitted  as  aforesaid,  then  the  said  Laws,  Statutes  and 
Ordinances  are  to  be  transmitted  by  the  next  Conveyance 
after  the  making  thereof  whenever  it  may  happen,  for  His 
Majesty's  Approbation  or  Disallowance  of  the  same. 

19.  And   His   Majesty's   further   Will    and    Pleasure    is, 

so 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

that  in  every  Act  which  shall  be  transmitted,  the  Several 
Dates  or  respective  Times  when  the  same  passed  the  House  of 
Representatives,  the  Council,  and  receiv'd  your  Assent,  be 
particularly  Expressed.  And  you  are  to  be  as  Explicit  as 
may  be  in  your  Observations  (to  be  sent  to  His  Majesty's 
Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations)  upon  every  Act, 
that  is  to  say,  whether  the  same  is  introductlve  of  a  nev/ 
Law ;  Declaratory  of  a  former  Law,  or  does  repeal  a  Law  then 
before  In  being.  And  you  are  likewise  to  send  to  His  Majesty's 
said  Commissioners  the  Reasons  for  the  passing  of  such  Law, 
unless  the  same  do  fully  appear  in  the  Preamble  of  the  said 
Act. 

20.  You  are  to  require  the  Secretary  of  the  said  Province 
or  his  Deputy  for  the  time  being,  to  furnish  you  with  Tran- 
scripts of  all  such  Acts  and  publick  Orders  as  shall  be  made 
from  time  to  time  together  with  a  Copy  of  the  Journal  of 
the  Council ;  And  that  all  such  Transcripts  and  Copies  be 
fairly  Abstracted  In  the  Margins,  to  the  end  the  same  may  be 
transmitted  unto  His  Majesty  and  to  His  Commissioners  for 
Trade  and  Plantations,  as  above  directed,  which  he  is 
duly  to  perform  upon  pain  of  incurring  the  Forfeiture  of  his 
Place. 

21.  You  are  to  require  from  the  Clerk  of  the  House  of 
Representatives  or  other  proper  Officer,  Transcripts  of  all 
the  Journals  and  other  Proceedings  of  the  said  House, 
fairly  abstracted  in  the  Margins,  to  the  end  the  same  may  in 
like  manner  be  transmitted,  as  aforesaid. 

22.  Whereas  several  Inconveniencies  have  arisen  to  His 
Majesty's  Governments  in  the  Plantations  by  Gifts  and 
Presents  made  to  His  Majesty's  Governors  by  the  Assemblies, 
It  is  His  Majesty's  Express  Will  and  Pleasure  that  you  do 
not  give  your  Assent  to  any  Act  or  Order  of  Assembly  in 
the  said  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay  under  your 
Government,  for  any  Gift  or  Present  to  be  made  to  you  the 
Governor  or  Commander  In  Chief  by  the  Assembly  of  the 
said  Province,  and  that  you  do  not  receive  any  Gift  or  Present 
from  the  said  Assembly,  or  others  on  any  Account  or  in  any 
way  whatsoever  upon  pain  of  His  Majesty's  Highest  DIs- 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

pleasure,  and  of  being  recalled  from  that  Government, 
except  only  in  the  manner  prescribed  in  the  following  In- 
structions. 

23.  Whereas  His  Majesty  by  His  Instructions  in  the  3d 
Year  of  His  Reign  to  Jonathan  Belcher  Esq  his  late  Governor 
of  the  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  did  Order  and 
Direct  the  said  Governor  to  acquaint  the  Council  and  House 
of  Representatives  of  the  Province,  that  as  They  hoped 
to  recommend  themselves  to  His  Majesty's  Royal  Grace 
and  Favour,  His  Majesty  expected  they  should  Manifest 
the  same  by  Establishing  a  fixed  and  Honourable  Salary  for 
the  Support  of  the  Dignity  of  the  Governor  there  for  the 
time  being,  and  that  He  Deemed  One  thousand  pounds 
Sterling  pr  Annum  a  Competent  Sum  for  that  purpose,  to  be 
constantly  paid  out  of  such  Monies  as  should  from  time 
to  time  be  raised  for  the  Support  of  the  Government  and 
Defence  of  the  Inhabitants  of  the  said  Province ;  Now  it 
is  His  Majesty's  Express  Will  and  Pleasure,  that  you  rec- 
ommend it  in  the  most  pressing  and  Effectual  manner  to  the 
Assembly  to  pass  An  Act  settling  a  fixed  Salary  of  One 
thousand  pounds  Sterling  pr  Annum  clear  of  all  Deduc- 
tions, on  your  self  and  your  Successors  in  that  Govern- 
ment, or  at  least  on  your  self  during  the  whole  time  of 
your  Government.  But  in  case  the  Assembly  should  not 
readily  comply  with  this  His  Majesty's  reasonable  recom- 
mendation You  may  in  the  mean  time  for  the  Support  of  your 
Dignity  as  His  Majesty's  Governor  of  the  said  Province, 
and  you  are  hereby  impowered  to  give  your  Assent  to  such 
Bill  as  shall  be  Annually  passed  for  paying  to  you  a  Salary 
of  One  thousand  pounds  Sterling  or  the  Value  thereof  in 
Money  of  that  Province,  until  His  Majesty's  Royal  Pleasure 
shall  be  Signified  to  the  contrary.  Provided  such  Act  be 
the  first  that  shall  be  passed  by  the  Assembly  of  the  said 
Province  before  they  proceed  upon  the  other  Business  of 
that  Session  wherein  such  Act  shall  be  proposed. 

24.  Whereas  for  some  Years  past  the  Governors  of  some  of 
His  Majesty's  Plantations  have  seized  and  appropriated  to 
their  own  Use  the  produce  of  Whales  of  several  Kinds,  taken 

$2 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

upon  those  Coasts,  upon  pretence  that  Whales  are  Royal 
Fishes,  which  tends  greatly  to  discourage  this  Branch  of 
Fishery  in  the  Plantations  and  prevents  persons  from  Settling 
there;  It  is  therefore  His  Majesty's  Will  and  Pleasure,  that 
you  do  not  pretend  to  any  such  Claim  nor  give  any  manner 
of  discouragement  to  the  Fishery  of  His  Subjects  upon  the 
Coast  of  the  Province  under  your  Government,  but  on  the 
contrary  that  you  will  give  all  possible  encouragement 
thereto. 

25.  And  whereas  great  Prejudice  may  happen  to  His 
Majesty's  service,  and  the  Security  of  the  said  Province  by 
your  Absence  from  those  Parts,  without  a  Sufficient  Cause 
and  especial  Leave  from  His  Majesty ;  For  the  prevention 
thereof  you  are  not  upon  any  Pretence  whatsoever  to  come 
to  Europe  from  your  Government  without  having  first 
obtained  Leave  from  His  Majesty  for  so  doing  under  his 
Sign  Manual  and  Signet,  or  by  Order  in  His  Majesty's 
Privy  Council. 

26.  Whereas  His  Majesty  has  been  pleased  by  His  Com- 
mission to  direct  that  In  case  of  your  Death,  or  Absence  from 
the  said  Province,  and  in  case  there  be  at  that  time  no  Person 
upon  the  Place  Commissionated  or  appointed  by  His  Majesty 
to  be  his  Lieutenant  Governor  or  Commander  in  Chief, 
the  then  present  Council  of  the  aforesaid  Province  of  the 
Massachusets  Bay  shall  take  upon  them  the  Administration 
of  the  Government,  and  Execute  the  said  Commission  and 
the  several  Powers  and  Authorities  therein  contained  in 
the  manner  thereby  directed ;  It  is  nevertheless  His  Maj- 
esty's Express  Will  and  Pleasure  that  in  such  Case,  the 
said  Council  shall  forbear  to  pass  any  Acts  but  what  are 
Immediately  necessary  for  the  Peace  and  Welfare  of  the  said 
Province  without  His  Majesty's  particular  Order  for  that 
Purpose. 

27.  Whereas  an  unwarrantable  Practice  hath  of  late  Years 
been  Introduced  Into  the  Proceedings  of  the  Assembly 
of  the  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  of  raising  Money 
and  Supplying  the  Current  Service  of  the  Year,  by  a  Vote 
or  Resolve  Instead  of  An  Act  of  Assembly,  and  of  reserving 

S3 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

thereby  to  the  said  Assembly,  a  power  of  determining  what 
Accounts  shall,  or  shall  not  be  paid  even  after  the  Service 
performed,  expressly  contrary  to  the  Tenour  of  the  Charter 
granted  to  that  Province  by  His  Majesty's  Royal  Pred- 
ecessors King  William  and  Queen  Mary,  whereby  they  are 
empowered  to  raise  Monies  for  the  Support  of  the  Govern- 
ment and  for  the  Defence  of  the  Inhabitants,  by  Act  or  Acts 
of  Assembly  only ;  And  the  issuing  of  the  said  Money 
when  raised  is  expressly  reserved  to  His  Majesty's  Governor 
for  the  time  being,  with  the  Advice  and  Consent  of  the 
Council  of  the  said  Province ;  Now  His  Majesty's  Will  and 
Pleasure  is,  and  He  doth  hereby  require  you  to  take  care 
for  the  future  that  no  Money  be  raised,  or  Bills  of  Credit 
Issued  in  the  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  but  by 
Act  or  Acts  of  Assembly,  in  which  Act  or  Acts,  one,  or  more 
Clauses  of  Appropriation  may  be  inserted,  but  that  the  pass- 
ing all  Accounts  for  Payment,  and  the  Issuing  of  all  Monies 
so  raised,  or  Bills  of  Credit,  be  left  to  the  Governor  or  Com- 
mander in  Chief  of  the  said  Province,  with  the  Advice  and 
Consent  of  the  Council,  according  to  their  Charter,  Subject 
nevertheless  to  a  future  Enquiry  of  the  then  present,  or 
any  other  Assembly,  as  to  the  Application  of  such  Monies. 
28.  And  whereas  His  Majesty  is  willing  in  the  best 
manner  to  provide  for  the  support  of  the  Government  of 
the  said  Province,  by  setting  apart  a  Sufficient  Allowance 
to  such  as  shall  be  Governor,  Lieut.  Governor,  or  Commander 
in  Chief  residing  for  the  time  being  within  the  same ;  His 
Majesty's  Will  and  Pleasure  therefore  is,  that  when  it 
shall  happen  that  you  shall  be  absent  from  the  said  Province, 
One  full  Moiety  of  the  Salary  and  of  all  Perquisites  and 
Emoluments  whatsoever  which  would  otherwise  become 
due  unto  you,  during  the  time  of  your  Absence  from  the 
said  Province  be  paid  and  satisfied  unto  such  Lieutenant 
Governor  who  shall  be  resident  upon  the  Place  for  the  time 
being,  which  His  Majesty  doth  hereby  Order  and  Allot 
into  him  towards  his  Maintenance  and  for  the  better 
Support  of  the  Dignity  of  that  Government;  Provided 
nevertheless,  and  it  is  His  Majesty's  Intent  and  Meaning, 

54 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

That  whenever  you  shall  think  it  necessary  for  His  Service 
to  go  into  the  Colony  of  Rhode  Island,  to  view  and  regu- 
late the  Militia,  whereof  His  Majesty  has  appointed  you 
Captain  General  and  Commander  in  Chief;  Or  whenever 
His  Majesty  shall  think  fit  to  require  you  by  His  especial 
Order  to  repair  to  any  other  of  His  Governments,  on  the 
Continent  of  America  for  His  particular  Service,  that  then  and 
in  such  Case  you  shall  receive  your  full  Salary,  Perquisites 
and  Emoluments,  as  if  you  were  then  actually  residing 
within  His  Majesty's  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay, 
any  thing  in  these  Instructions  to  the  contrary  in  any  wise 
notwithstanding. 

29.  You  shall  not  remit  any  Fines  or  Forfeitures  whatso- 
ever, above  the  Sum  of  Ten  pounds,  nor  dispose  of  any 
Escheats  or  Forfeitures  whatsoever  until  upon  signifying 
to  the  Commissioners  of  His  Majesty's  Treasury  or  His 
High  Treasurer  for  the  time  being  and  to  His  Commissioners 
for  Trade  and  Plantations  the  Nature  of  the  Offence,  and 
the  Occasion  of  such  Fines  and  Forfeitures  or  Escheats  with 
the  Particular  Sums  or  Value  thereof  (which  you  are  to  do 
with  all  Speed)  you  shall  have  received  His  Majesty's  Di- 
rections therein ;  But  you  may  in  the  meantime  Suspend 
the  Payment  of  the  said  Fines  and  Forfeitures. 

30.  You  are  to  transmit  unto  His  Majesty  and  to  his 
Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations,  with  all  con- 
venient speed,  a  particular  Account  of  all  Establishments  of 
Jurisdictions,  Courts,  Offices  and  Officers,  Powers  Authori- 
ties Fees  and  Privileges  which  shall  be  granted  or  Settled 
within  the  said  Province,  together  with  an  Account  of  all 
publick  Charges  relating  to  the  said  Courts ;  And  likewise 
exact  and  Authentick  Copies  of  all  Proceedings  in  such 
Causes  where  Appeals  shall  be  lodged  before  His  Majesty 
in  His  Council. 

31.  You  shall  likewise  take  especial  Care  with  the  Ad- 
vice and  Consent  of  the  Council,  to  regulate  all  Salaries  and 
Fees  belonging  to  Places  or  paid  upon  Emergencies  that 
they  be  within  the  Bounds  of  Moderation,  and  that  no 
Exaction  be  made   upon  any  Occasion  whatsoever ;  As  also 

55 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

that  Tables  of  all  Fees  be  publlckly  hung  up  In  all  Places 
where  such  Fees  are  to  be  paid ;  And  you  are  to  transmit 
Copies  of  all  such  Tables  of  Fees  unto  His  Majesty  and  to 
his  Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations,  as  aforesaid. 

32.  And  whereas  Complaint  has  been  made  to  His 
Majesty,  that  certain  illegal  and  unaccustomed  Fees  on 
Shipping  have  been  heretofore  exacted,  It  is  His  Majesty's 
further  Will  and  Pleasure,  and  He  does  hereby  Strictly 
Command,  that  neither  you  the  said  Governor  nor  any 
Governor,  Lieut.  Governor  or  Commander  in  Chief  of  the 
said  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay  do  presume  to  exact 
or  demand  any  other  Fees  than  what  are  legal  and  have  been 
accustomarily  taken  by  the  Governors  or  Commanders  in 
Chief  of  that  Province,  for  registring  of  Ships  and  for  let 
passes,  on  any  Pretence  or  Account  whatsoever. 

33.  You  are  to  take  Care,  that  no  Man's  Life,  Member, 
Freehold  or  Goods,  be  taken  away  or  harmed  in  the  said 
Province  under  your  Government,  otherwise  than  by  es- 
tablished and  known  Laws,  not  repugnant  to,  but  as  much  as 
may  be  agreeable  to  the  Laws  of  this  Kingdom.  And  that 
no  Persons  for  the  future  be  sent  as  Prisoners  to  this  King- 
dom from  the  Province  under  your  Government,  without 
Sufficient  Proof  of  their  Crimes,  and  that  Proof  transmitted 
along  with  the  said  Prisoner. 

34.  You  shall  endeavour  to  get  a  Law  passed  (if  not 
already  done)  for  the  restraining  of  any  inhumane  severity 
which  by  ill  Masters  or  Overseers  may  be  used  towards  their 
Christian  Servants  and  their  Slaves,  and  that  Provision  be 
made  therein,  that  the  wilfuU  killing  of  Indians  and  Ne- 
groes may  be  punished  with  Death,  and  that  a  fit  Penalty 
be  imposed  for  the  maiming  of  them. 

35.  You  are  to  take  Care  that  all  Writs  be  issued  in  His 
Majesty's  Name  throughout  the  said  Province. 

36.  You  are  to  take  Care,  by  and  with  the  Advice  and 
Assistance  of  the  said  Council,  that  the  Prisons  there,  if 
they  want  Reparation  be  forthwith  repaired  and  put  into 
and  kept  in  such  a  Condition  as  may  sufficiently  secure  the 
Prisoners  that  are  or  shall  be  there  in  Custody. 

S6 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

37.  And  whereas  several  Complaints  have  been  made 
by  the  Surveyor  General  and  other  Officers  of  His  Majesty's 
Customs  in  His  Majesty's  Plantations  in  America,  that  they 
have  frequently  been  obliged  to  serve  on  Juries,  and  per- 
sonally to  appear  in  Arms  whenever  the  Militia  is  drawn 
out,  and  thereby  are  much  hindred  in  the  Execution  of  their 
Employments ;  His  Majesty's  Will  and  Pleasure  is,  that 
you  take  effectual  Care,  and  give  the  necessary  Directions 
that  the  several  Officers  of  the  Customs  be  excused  and 
exempted  from  Serving  on  any  Juries  or  personally  ap- 
pearing in  Arms  in  the  Militia,  unless  in  Cases  of  absolute 
Necessity,  or  serving  any  Parochial  Offices  which  may  hin- 
der them  in  the  Execution  of  their  Duties. 

38.  And  whereas  the  Surveyors  General  of  the  Customs 
in  the  Plantations  are  Impowered,  in  case  of  the  Vacancy  of 
any  of  the  Offices  of  the  Customs  by  Death,  Removal  or 
otherwise,  to  appoint  other  Persons  to  execute  such  Offices 
until  they  receive  further  Directions  from  the  Commissioners 
of  His  Majesty's  Treasury  or  the  High  Treasurer,  or  Com- 
missioners of  the  Customs  for  the  time  being ;  But  whereas 
the  Districts  of  the  said  Surveyors  General  are  very  Exten- 
sive, and  that  they  are  required  at  proper  times  to  Visit 
the  Officers  in  the  Several  Governments  under  their  Inspec- 
tion ;  And  that  it  may  happen  that  some  of  the  Officers  of  the 
Customs  in  the  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay  may  Dye 
at  the  time  when  the  Surveyor  General  is  absent  in  some 
distant  Part  of  his  District,  so  that  he  cannot  receive  Ad- 
vice of  such  Officer's  Death  within  a  reasonable  time,  and 
thereby  make  Provision  for  carrying  on  the  service  by  ap- 
pointing some  other  Person  in  the  room  of  such  Officer  who 
may  happen  to  Dye ;  Therefore  that  there  may  be  no  De- 
lay given  on  such  Occasions  unto  the  Masters  of  Ships  or 
Merchants  in  their  Dispatches,  It  is  His  Majesty's  fur- 
ther Will  and  Pleasure  in  case  of  such  Absence  of  the  Sur- 
veyor General,  or  if  he  should  happen  to  Dye,  and  in  such 
Cases  only,  that  upon  the  Death  of  any  Collector  of  the 
Customs  within  that  Province,  You  shall  make  Choice  of  a 
Person  of  known  Loyalty,   Experience,  Diligence,   and  Fi- 

57 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

delity  to  be  employ'd  in  such  Collector's  Room  for  the  Pur- 
poses aforesaid,  until  the  Surveyor  General  of  the  Customs 
shall  be  advised  thereof,  and  appoint  another  to  succeed  in 
their  Places,  or  that  further  Directions  shall  be  given  therein, 
by  the  Commissioners  of  His  Majesty's  Treasury,  or  the 
High  Treasurer  or  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  Customs  for 
the  time  being,  which  shall  be  first  Signified,  taking  care 
that  you  do  not  under  Pretence  of  this  Instruction  inter- 
fere with  the  Powers  and  Authorities  given  by  the  Com- 
missioners of  the  Customs  to  the  said  Surveyor  General, 
when  he  is  able  to  put  the  same  in  Execution. 

39.  And  whereas  His  Majesty  has  been  graciously  pleased 
to  constitute  and  appoint  a  Surveyor  General  of  all  His 
Woods  in  North  America,  with  proper  Deputies  under  him, 
in  order  the  better  to  secure  and  preserve  for  the  use  of  the 
Royal  Navy,  such  Trees  as  shall  be  found  proper  for  that 
Service,  It  is  His  Majesty's  Will  and  Pleasure,  that  you  be 
Aiding  and  Assisting  to  the  said  Surveyor  and  his  Deputies ; 
And  that  you  give  Orders  to  all  Officers  Civil  and  Military 
that  they  in  their  several  Stations  and  Places  be  aiding  and 
assisting  to  the  said  Surveyor  or  his  Deputies,  in  preventing 
the  Destruction  of  the  Woods  in  that  Province  or  in  punish- 
ing such  as  shall  be  found  offending  therein. 

40,  You  shall  Administer  or  cause  to  be  Administered  the 
Oaths  mention'd  in  the  aforesaid  Act,  Entituled,  An  Act 
for  the  further  Security  of  His  Majesty^ s  Person  and  Govern- 
ment and  the  Succession  of  the  Crown  in  the  Heirs  of  the 
late  Princess  Sophia  being  Protestants,  and  for  extinguish- 
ing the  Hopes  of  the  pretended  Prince  of  Wales  and  his  open 
and  secret  Abettors,  to  the  Members  and  Officers  of  His  Majes- 
ty's Council  and  House  of  Representatives,  to  all  Judges, 
Justices,  and  all  other  Persons  that  hold  any  Office  or  Place 
of  Trust  or  Profit  in  the  said  Province,  whether  by  Virtue 
of  any  Patent  under  the  Great  Seal  of  Great  Britain,  or  the 
Seal  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  or  otherwise ;  And  you 
shall  also  cause  them  to  make  and  subscribe  the  aforesaid 
Declaration,  without  the  doing  of  all  which  you  are  not  to 
admit  any  Person  whatsoever  into  any  publick  Office,  nor 

s8 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Suffer  those  who  have  been  admitted  formerly,  to  continue 
therein. 

41.  You  are  to  permit  a  Liberty  of  Conscience  to  all 
Persons  (except  Papists)  So  they  be  contented  with  a  quiet 
and  peaceable  Enjoyment  of  the  same,  not  giving  Offence  or 
Scandal  to  the  Government. 

42.  His  Majesty  having  been  graciously  pleased  to  grant 
unto  the  Right  Reverend  Father  in  God,  Edmund  Lord 
Bishop  of  London,  a  Commission  under  the  Great  Seal  of 
Great  Britain,  whereby  he  is  impowered  to  execute  Eccle- 
siastical Jurisdiction  by  himself  or  by  such  Commissaries  as 
he  shall  appoint  in  the  several  Plantations  in  America ; 
It  is  His  Majesty's  Will  and  Pleasure,  that  you  give  all 
Countenance  and  due  Encouragement  to  the  said  Bishop 
of  London  or  his  Commissaries  in  the  legal  Exercise  of  such 
Ecclesiastical  Jurisdiction  according  to  the  Laws  of  the 
Province  under  your  Government,  and  to  the  Tenour  of 
the  said  Commission,  a  Copy  whereof  is  hereunto  Annexed ; 
And  that  you  do  cause  the  said  Commission  to  be  forthwith 
registred  in  the  publick  Records  of  the  said  Province. 

43.  The  said  Lord  Bishop  of  London  having  presented  a 
Petition  to  His  late  Majesty,  humbly  beseeching  him  to  send 
Instructions  to  the  Governors  of  all  the  several  Planta- 
tions in  America,  That  they  cause  all  the  Laws  already 
made  against  Blasphemy,  Prophaness,  Adultery,  Forni- 
cation, Polygamy,  Incest,  Prophanation  of  the  Lord's 
Day,  Swearing  and  Drunkenness  in  their  respective  Govern- 
ments, to  be  vigorously  executed ;  and  His  Majesty  think- 
ing it  highly  Just,  that  all  Persons  who  shall  offend  in  any 
of  the  Particulars  aforesaid,  should  be  prosecuted  and  pun- 
ished for  their  said  Offences,  It  is  therefore  His  Will  and 
Pleasure  that  you  take  due  Care  for  the  Punishment  of 
the  Aforementiond  Vices,  and  that  you  earnestly  recommend 
to  the  Council  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  Massa- 
chusets  Bay,  to  provide  Effectual  Laws  for  the  Restraint 
and  Punishment  of  all  such  of  the  aforementioned  Vices, 
against  which  no  Laws  are  as  yet  Provided  ;  And  also  you 
are  to  use  your  Endeavours  to  render  the  Laws  in  being 

59 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

more  effectual,  by  providing  for  the  Punishment  of  the 
aforemention'd  Vices,  by  Presentment  upon  Oath  to  be 
made  to  the  Temporal  Courts  by  the  Church  Wardens  of 
the  several  Parishes,  or  other  proper  Officers  to  be  appointed 
for  that  Purpose ;  And  for  the  further  Discouragement  of 
Vice  and  Encouragement  of  Virtue  and  good  living  (that 
by  such  Example  the  Infidels  may  be  invited  and  perswaded 
to  embrace  the  Christian  Religion)  you  are  not  to  admit 
any  Person  to  publick  Trusts  and  Employments  in  the  said 
Province  under  your  Government,  whose  ill  Fame  and 
Conversation  may  occasion  Scandal ;  And  it  is  His  Majesty's 
further  Will  and  Pleasure,  that  you  recommend  to  the  As- 
sembly to  enter  upon  proper  Methods  for  the  erecting  and 
maintaining  of  Schools,  in  order  to  the  training  up  of  Youth 
to  reading  and  to  a  necessary  Knowledge  of  the  Principles 
of  Religion ;  And  you  are  also  with  the  Assistance  of  the 
Council  and  House  of  Representatives,  to  find  out  the  best 
Means  to  facilitate  and  encourage  the  Conversion  of  Ne- 
groes and  Indians  to  the  Christian  Religion. 

44.  You  shall  send  an  Account  to  His  Majesty  and  to 
His  Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations  by  the  first 
Conveyance,  of  the  present  Number  of  Planters  and  In- 
habitants Men,  Women  and  Children  as  well  Masters  as 
Servants  free  and  unfree,  and  of  the  Slaves  in  the  said 
Province ;  As  also  Yearly  Accounts  of  the  Increase  or  De- 
crease of  them  and  how  many  of  them  are  fit  to  bear  Arms  in 
the  Militia  of  the  said  Province. 

45.  You  shall  also  cause  an  exact  Account  to  be  kept  of 
all  Persons  Born,  Christened  and  Buried,  and  you  shall 
Yearly  send  fair  Abstracts  thereof  to  His  Majesty  and  to 
His  Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations,  as  afore- 
said. 

46.  You  shall  take  Care  that  all  Planters  and  Christian 
Servants  be  well  and  fitly  provided  with  Arms,  and  that 
they  be  listed  under  good  Officers  and  when,  and  as  often 
as  shall  be  thought  fit,  mustered  and  trained,  whereby  they 
may  be  in  a  better  readiness  for  the  Defence  of' the  Province 
under  your  Government. 

60 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

47.  But  you  are  to  take  especial  Care  that  neither  the 
frequency  nor  Unreasonableness  of  remote  Marches,  Mus- 
ters and  Trainings  be  an  unnecessary  Impediment  to  the 
Affairs  of  the  Inhabitants. 

48.  You  shall  not  upon  any  Occasion  whatsoever  establish 
or  put  in  Execution  any  Articles  of  War  or  other  Law  Mar- 
tial, upon  any  of  His  Majesty's  Subjects  Inhabitants  of  the 
said  Province,  without  the  Advice  and  Consent  of  the  Coun- 
cil there. 

49.  And  whereas  there  is  no  Power  given  you  by  your  Com- 
mission to  execute  Martial  Law  in  time  of  Peace,  upon 
Soldiers  in  pay,  and  yet  nevertheless  it  may  be  necessary 
that  some  Care  be  taken  for  the  keeping  of  good  Discipline 
amongst  those  that  His  Majesty  may  at  any  time  hereafter 
think  fit  to  send  into  the  said  Province,  (which  may  properly 
be  provided  for  by  the  Legislative  Power  of  the  same)  you  are 
therefore  to  recommend  unto  the  General  Assembly  of  the 
said  Province  that  (if  not  already  done)  they  prepare  such 
Act  or  Law  for  the  punishing  of  Mutiny,  Desertion,  and 
false  Musters,  and  for  the  better  preserving  of  good  Disci- 
pline among  the  said  Soldiers  as  may  best  answer  those 
Ends. 

50.  And  whereas  by  His  Majesty's  Commission  for  the 
Government  of  the  said  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay, 
He  has  given  you  all  the  Powers  and  Authorities  of  any 
Captain  General  over  His  Majesty's  Colonies  of  Rhode 
Island,  Providence  Plantation  and  the  Narraganset  Country 
or  King's  Province,  His  Majesty's  Royal  Pleasure  and  In- 
tention is,  that  in  time  of  Peace,  the  Militia  within  each 
of  the  said  Colonies  be  left  to  the  Government  and  Dis- 
position of  the  respective  Governors  of  the  same.  But  so  as 
nevertheless  in  Case  of  apparent  Danger  or  other  Exigency, 
you  do  at  all  times  take  upon  Your  self  the  Superior  Com- 
mand of  those  Forces,  as  in  the  said  Commission  is  directed. 

51.  You  are  to  encourage  the  Indians  upon  all  Occasions, 
so  that  they  may  apply  themselves  to  the  English  Trade 
and  Nation  rather  than  to  any  other. 

52.  And  whereas  you    will   receive  from  His  Majesty's 

61 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Commissioners  for  executing  the  Office  of  High  Admiral  of 
Great  Britain  and  of  the  Plantations  a  Commission  con- 
stituting you  Vice  Admiral  of  the  said  Province  of  the 
Massachusets  Bay,  You  are  hereby  required  and  directed 
carefully  to  put  in  Execution  the  several  Powers  thereby 
granted  you. 

53.  And  there  having  been  great  Irregularities  in  the  man- 
ner of  granting  Commissions  in  the  Plantations  to  private 
Ships  of  War,  you  are  to  govern  yourself  whenever  there 
shall  be  Occasion  according  to  the  Commissions  and  In- 
structions granted  in  this  Kingdom,  Copies  whereof  will  be 
herewith  deliver'd  you ;  But  you  are  not  to  grant  Com- 
missions of  Marque  or  Reprizal  against  any  Prince  or  State, 
or  their  Subjects  in  Amity  with  His  Majesty,  to  any  Person 
what-soever  without  His  Majesty's  especial  Command,  and 
you  are  to  oblige  the  Commanders  of  all  Ships  having  pri- 
vate Commissions  or  Letters  of  Marque  or  Reprizal,  to  wear 
the  same  Ensign  as  Merchant  Ships,  and  a  red  Jack  with 
the  Union  Jack  in  a  Canton  at  the  upper  Corner  next  the 
Staff. 

54.  Whereas  it  is  absolutely  necessary  that  His  Majesty 
be  exactly  informed  of  the  State  of  Defence  of  all  his  Plan- 
tations in  America,  as  well  in  Relation  to  the  Stores  of  War 
that  are  in  each  Plantation  as  to  the  Forts  and  Fortifications 
there,  and  what  more  may  be  necessary  to  be  built  for  the 
Defence  and  Security  of  the  same ;  you  are  so  soon  as  pos- 
sible to  prepare  an  Account  thereof  with  Relation  to  His 
Majesty's  said  Province  in  the  most  particular  manner; 
And  you  are  therein  to  express  the  present  State  of  the  Arms, 
Amunition  and  other  Stores  of  War  belonging  to  the  said 
Province,  either  in  any  publick  Magazines  or  in  the  Hands 
of  private  Persons,  together  with  the  State  of  all  Places 
either  already  fortified,  or  that  you  Judge  necessary  to  be 
fortified  for  the  Security  of  His  Majesty's  said  Province ; 
And  you  are  to  transmit  the  said  Accounts  to  His  Majesty 
and  to  His  Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations,  As 
also  a  Duplicate  thereof  to  His  Majesty's  Master  General 
or  Principal  Officers  of  his  Ordnance,  which  Accounts  are 

62 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

to  express  the  particulars  of  Ordnance,  Carriages,  Ball, 
Powder  and  all  other  Sorts  of  Arms  and  Amunition  in  His 
Majesty's  publick  Stores  at  your  Arrival,  and  so  from  time 
to  time  of  what  shall  be  sent  to  you  or  bought  with  the  pub- 
lick  Money,  and  to  Specify  the  time  of  the  Disposal  and 
the  Occasion  thereof,  and  other  like  Accounts  half  Yearly 
in  the  same  manner. 

55.  You  are  to  take  especial  Care  that  fit  Storehouses 
be  Settled  in  His  Majesty's  Province  of  the  Massachusets 
Bay,  for  receiving  and  keeping  of  Arms,  Amunition  and 
other  publick  Stores. 

56.  And  whereas  His  Majesty's  Royal  Predecessors  have 
been  constantly  at  great  Charge  in  sending  thither  and 
maintaining  Ships  of  War  to  Cruize  upon  the  Coasts  of  that 
Province,  in  order  to  their  Protection  against  Enemies  by 
Sea ;  You  are  therefore  to  require  and  press  the  Council 
and  House  of  Representatives  vigorously  to  exert  themselves 
in  fortifying  all  Places  necessary  for  the  Security  of  the  said 
Province  by  Land,  and  in  providing  what  else  may  be  neces- 
sary in  all  Respects  for  their  further  Defence ;  In  order 
whereunto  you  are  also  to  cause  a  Survey  to  be  made  of  all 
the  considerable  Landing  Places  and  Harbours  within  the 
said  Province,  and  with  the  Advice  of  His  Majesty's  said 
Council  to  erect  In  any  of  them  such  Fortifications  as  shall 
be  necessary  for  their  Security  and  Advantage. 

57.  You  shall  transmit  to  His  Majesty  and  to  His  Com- 
missioners for  Trade  and  Plantations,  by  the  first  Oppor- 
tunity, a  Map  with  the  exact  Description  of  the  whole  Terri- 
tory under  your  Government,  with  the  several  Plantations 
and  Fortifications  upon  It,  and  you  are  likewise  to  use  your 
best  Endeavours  to  procure  a  good  Map  to  be  drawn  of  all 
the  Indian  Country  In  the  Neighbourhood  of  His  Majesty's 
Plantations  in  those  Parts,  marking  the  Names  of  the  sev- 
eral Nations  as  they  call  themselves,  and  are  called  by  the 
English  and  French,  and  the  Places  where  they  Inhabit, 
and  to  transmit  the  same  In  like  manner. 

58.  You  are  from  time  to  time  to  give  an  Account,  as  be- 
fore directed,  what  Strength  your  Neighbours  have  (be  they 

63 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Indians  or  others)  by  Sea  and  Land,  and  of  the  Condition 
of  their  Plantations,  and  what  Correspondence  you  do  keep 
with  them. 

59.  And  in  case  of  any  Distress  of  any  others  of  His 
Majesty's  Plantations,  You  shall,  upon  Application  of  the  re- 
spective Governors  thereof  to  you,  assist  them  with  what 
Aid  the  Condition  and  Safety  of  the  Province  under  your 
Government  can  permit ;  And  more  especially  in  case  the 
Province  of  New  York  be  at  any  time  Invaded  by  an  Enemy, 
You  are  to  call  upon  the  Council  and  House  of  Represen- 
tatives of  the  Massachusets  Bay  to  make  good  in  Men  (or 
Money  in  lieu  thereof)  their  Quota  of  Assistance  according 
to  the  Repartition  formerly  sent  thither,  assuring  them  that 
in  case  of  the  like  Invasion  of  the  Province  of  the  Massachu- 
sets Bay,  they  will  be  mutually  assisted  from  New  York. 

60.  You  are  to  examine  what  Rates  and  Duties  are  charged 
and  payable  upon  any  Goods  Imported  and  Exported  within 
the  said  Province,  whether  of  the  Growth  or  Manufacture 
of  the  said  Province  or  otherwise ;  And  you  are  to  Suppress 
the  Engrossing  of  Commodities  as  tending  to  the  Preju- 
dice of  that  Freedom  which  Trade  and  Commerce  ought  to 
have ;  And  to  use  your  best  Endeavours  in  the  Improving 
the  Trade  of  those  Parts  by  Settling  such  Orders  and  Regu- 
lations therein,  with  the  Advice  of  the  said  Council,  as  may 
be  most  acceptable  to  the  Generality  of  the  Inhabitants ; 
And  to  send  unto  His  Majesty  and  to  His  Commissioners 
for  Trade  and  Plantations  Yearly  or  oftner,  as  Occasion 
may  require,  the  best  and  most  particular  Account  of  any 
Laws  that  have  at  any  time  been  made,  Manufactures  set 
up  or  Trade  carry'd  on  in  the  Province  of  the  Massachusets 
Bay,  which  may  in  any  wise  affect  the  Trade  and  Naviga- 
tion of  this  Kingdom. 

61.  And  you  are  to  give  all  due  Encouragement  and  In- 
vitation to  Merchants  and  others  who  shall  bring  Trade  unto 
the  said  Province,  or  any  way  contribute  to  the  Advantage 
thereof;  and  in  particular  to  the  Royal  African  Company, 
and  other  His  Majesty's  Subjects  trading  to  Africa. 

62.  Whereas  His  Majesty  has  been  informed  that  during 

64 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  time  of  War  His  Enemies  have  frequently  got  Intelli- 
gence of  the  State  of  the  Plantations  by  Letters  from  pri- 
vate persons  to  their  Correspondents  in  Great  Britain,  taken 
on  Board  Ships  coming  from  the  Plantations,  which  has 
been  of  dangerous  Consequence  :  His  Majesty's  Will  and 
Pleasure  therefore  is,  that  you  signify  to  all  Merchants, 
Planters  and  others,  that  they  be  very  cautious  in  time  of 
War,  whenever  that  shall  happen,  in  giving  any  Account  by 
Letters  of  the  publick  State  and  Condition  of  the  Province 
of  the  Massachusets  Bay ;  And  you  are  further  to  give 
Directions  to  all  Masters  of  Ships  or  other  Persons  to  whom 
you  may  intrust  your  Letters,  that  they  put  such  Letters 
into  a  Bag  with  a  Sufficient  Weight  to  Sink  the  same  immedi- 
ately in  case  of  imminent  Danger  from  the  Enemy ;  And 
you  are  also  to  let  the  Merchants  and  Planters  know  how 
greatly  it  is  for  their  Interest,  that  their  Letters  should  not 
fall  into  the  Hands  of  the  Enemy,  And  therefore  that  they 
should  give  the  like  Orders  to  Masters  of  Ships  in  relation 
to  their  Letters ;  And  you  are  further  to  Advise  all  Masters 
of  Ships,  that  they  do  Sink  all  Letters  in  case  of  Danger  in 
the  Manner  beforementioned, 

63.  And  whereas  in  the  late  Wars  the  Merchants  and 
Planters  in  America  did  correspond  and  trade  with  His 
Majesty's  Enemies,  and  carry  Intelligence  to  them,  to  the 
great  Prejudice  and  Hazard  of  the  British  Plantations,  you 
are  therefore  by  all  possible  Methods  to  endeavour  to  hin- 
der all  such  Trade  and  Correspondence  in  Time  of  War, 

64.  Whereas  by  the  5th  and  6th  Articles  of  the  Treaty  of 
Peace  and  Neutrality  in  America,  concluded  between  Eng- 
land and  France  the  6/16  Day  of  November  1686,  The 
Subjects  and  Inhabitants  of  each  Kingdom  are  prohibited 
to  Trade  and  Fish  in  all  Places  possessed  or  which  shall  be 
possessed  by  the  other  in  America,  and  that  if  any  shall 
be  found  trading  contrary  to  the  said  Treaty,  upon  due 
proof,  the  said  Ship  shall  be  confiscated ;  But  in  case  the 
Subjects  of  either  King  shall  be  forced  by  Stress  of  Weather, 
Enemies  or  other  Necessity,  into  the  Ports  of  the  other  in 
America,  they  shall  be  treated  with  Humanity  and  Kind- 

voL.  I — F  6s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ness,  and  may  provide  themselves  with  Victuals  and  other 
Things  necessary  for  their  Sustenance  and  Reparation  of 
their  Ships,  at  reasonable  Rates  ;  Provided  they  do  not  break 
Bulk,  nor  carry  any  Goods  out  of  their  Ships,  Exposing  them 
to  Sale,  nor  receive  any  Merchandize  on  Board,  under 
Penalty  of  Confiscation  of  Ship  and  Goods ;  It  is  therefore 
His  Majesty's  Will  and  Pleasure,  that  you  Signify  to  all 
His  Subjects  under  your  Government  the  Purport  and  In- 
tent of  the  abovesaid  two  Articles  ;  And  that  you  take  partic- 
ular Care  that  none  of  the  French  Subjects  be  allowed  to 
trade  from  their  said  Settlements  to  the  Province  under 
your  Government,  or  fish  upon  the  Coasts  thereof. 

65.  Whereas  Commissions  have  been  granted  unto  sev- 
eral Persons  in  His  Majesty's  respective  Plantations  in 
America  for  the  trying  of  Pirates  in  those  Parts,  pursuant 
to  the  Acts  for  the  Effectual  Suppression  of  Piracy ;  And 
by  a  Commission  already  sent  to  the  Province  of  the  Massa- 
chusets  Bay,  you  (as  Captain  General  and  Governor  in 
Chief  of  the  said  Province)  are  empowered  together  with 
others  therein  mentioned  to  proceed  accordingly,  in  refer- 
rence  to  the  said  Province ;  His  Majesty's  Will  and  Pleasure 
is,  that  in  all  Matters  relating  to  Pirates  you  Govern  your- 
self according  to  the  Intent  of  the  said  Acts  and  Commission. 

66.  Whereas  His  Majesty  has  thought  it  necessary  for 
His  Royal  Service  to  constitute,  authorize  and  appoint  a 
Receiver  General  of  the  Rights  and  Perquisites  of  the  Ad- 
miralty, It  is  his  Express  Will  and  Pleasure  that  you  be 
Aiding  and  Assisting  to  the  said  Receiver  General,  his  Deputy 
or  Deputies  in  the  Execution  of  the  said  Office  of  Receiver 
General,  and  does  hereby  enjoin  and  require  you  to  make  up 
your  Accounts  with  him,  his  Deputy  or  Deputies  of  all 
Rights  of  Admiralty  (Effects  of  Pirates  included)  as  you  or 
your  Officers  have  received,  or  shall  or  may  receive  for  the 
future,  and  to  pay  over  to  the  said  Receiver  General,  his 
Deputy  or  Deputies  for  His  Majesty's  Use,  all  such  Sum  or 
Sums  of  Money  as  shall  appear  upon  the  foot  of  such  Ac- 
counts to  be  and  remain  in  your  Hands  or  in  the  Hands  of 
any  of  your  Officers ;   And  whereas  the  said  Receiver  Gen- 

66, 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

eral  is  directed  in  case  the  Parties  chargeable  with  any  Part 
of  such  Revenue,  refuse,  neglect  or  delay  Payment  thereof 
by  himself  or  Sufficient  Deputy,  to  apply  in  His  Majestys 
Name  to  the  Governors,  Judges,  Attorneys  General  or  any 
others  His  Majesty's  Officers  or  Magistrates,  to  be  aiding 
and  assisting  to  him  in  recovering  the  same ;  Now  you  the 
Governor,  the  Judges,  the  Attorney  General  and  all  other 
His  Majesty's  Officers  whom  the  same  may  concern  are 
hereby  required  to  use  all  lawful  Authority  for  the  recovering 
and  levying  thereof. 

d'j.  Whereas  it  is  very  necessary  for  His  Majesty's  Serv- 
ice that  there  be  an  Attorney  General  appointed  and  Set- 
tled who  may  at  any  time  take  Care  of  His  Majesty's  Rights 
and  Interests  within  the  said  Province,  you  are  with  all  con- 
venient Speed  to  Nominate,  with  the  Advice  and  Consent 
of  the  Council  or  Assistants,  a  fit  Person  for  that  Trust ;  And 
whereas  His  Majesty  has  been  informed  that  the  General 
Court  have  taken  upon  them  to  Name  this  Officer,  You  are 
therefore  to  signify  to  them,  that  His  Majesty  conceives 
that  Nomination  to  be  his  undoubted  Right,  And  you  are 
not  to  Suffer  any  Person  to  Act  in  that  Station  but  such  as 
shall  be  Nominated  by  you,  as  aforesaid. 

68.  And  whereas  an  Act  was  passed  here  in  the  3d  and 
4th  Years  of  Queen  Anne,  Entituled,  An  Act  for  encouraging 
the  Importation  of  Naval  Stores  from  Her  Majesty^  s  Plantations 
in  America,  and  another  passed  in  the  9th  Year  of  the  said 
Queen's  Reign,  Entituled,  An  Act  for  the  Preservation  of  White 
and  other  Pine  Trees  growing  in  Her  Majesty'' s  Colonies  of  New 
Hampshire,  the  Massachusets  Bay,  and  Province  of  Main,  Rhode 
Island  and  Providence  Plantation,  the  Narraganset  Country 
or  King's  Province,  and  Connecticut  in  New  England,  and 
New  York  and  New  Jersey  in  America,  for  the  Masting  Her 
Majesty's  Navy;  And  also  An  Act  passed  in  the  8th  Year 
of  his  late  Majesty's  Reign,  Entituled,  An  Act  giving  fur- 
ther Encouragement  for  the  Importation  of  Naval  Stores,  and 
for  other  Purposes  therein  mentioned ;  Yet  nevertheless  His 
Majesty  has  been  informed  that  great  Spoils  are  daily  com- 
mitted in  His  Woods,  in  the  Province  of  Main,  and  other 

67 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Parts  within  your  Government  of  the  Massachusets  Bay, 
by  Cutting  down  and  converting  to  private  Use,  such  Trees 
as  are  or  may  be  proper  for  the  Service  of  the  Royal  Navy ; 
And  it  being  necessary  that  all  such  Abuses  which  tend  so 
evidently  to  deprive  His  Majesty  of  those  Supplies,  be  ef- 
fectually redressed ;  It  is  His  Majesty's  Will  and  Pleasure, 
that  you  take  Care  and  give  in  Charge,  that  the  said  Acts 
as  also  that,  passed  in  the  2d  Year  of  His  present  Majesty's 
Reign  Entituled,  An  Act  for  the  better  Preservation  of  His 
Majesty^ s  Woods  in  America  and  for  the  Encouragement  of 
the  Importation  of  Naval  Stores  from  thence,  and  to  encourage 
the  Importation  of  Masts,  Yards  and  Bowsprights  from  that 
Part  of  Great  Britain,  called  Scotland,  and  every  Clause, 
Article  and  Proviso  therein  be  Strictly  and  duly  comply'd 
with. 

69.  You  are  to  take  all  possible  Care  in  the  granting  of 
any  Lands  within  the  Province  under  your  Government 
not  already  disposed  of,  that  such  Limitations  and  Methods 
be  observed  as  may  best  tend  to  the  Safety  and  due  Im- 
provement of  the  said  Province. 

70.  You  are  from  time  to  time  to  give  unto  His  Majesty 
and  to  His  Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations,  as 
aforesaid,  an  Account  of  the  Wants  and  Defects  of  the  said 
Province,  what  are  the  chief  Products  thereof,  what  New 
Improvements  are  made  therein  by  the  Industry  of  the 
Inhabitants  or  Planters,  and  what  further  Improvements 
you  conceive  may  be  made  or  Advantages  gained  by  Trade, 
and  which  way  His  Majesty  may  contribute  thereunto. 

71.  If  any  thing  shall  happen  which  may  be  of  Advantage 
or  Security  to  the  said  Province  under  your  Government, 
which  is  not  herein  or  by  your  Commission  provided  for, 
His  Majesty  doth  hereby  allow  unto  you  with  the  Advice 
and  Consent  of  the  said  Council  to  take  Order  for  the  pres- 
ent therein,  giving  to  His  Majesty  by  One  of  His  Principal 
Secretaries  of  State,  and  to  the  foresaid  Commissioners  for 
Trade  and  Plantations,  Speedy  Notice  thereof,  that  so  you 
may  receive  His  Majesty's  Confirmation  if  He  shall  approve 
the   same.   Provided   always   and  His  Majesty's   Will   and 

68 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Pleasure  is,  that  you  do  not  by  any  Colour  of  any  Power  or 
Authority  hereby  given  you,  commence  or  declare  War 
without  His  Majesty's  Knowledge  and  particular  Commands 
therein,  except  it  be  against  Indians  upon  Emergencies, 
wherein  the  Consent  of  the  Council  shall  be  had,  and  Speedy 
Notice  thereof  given  to  His  Majesty,  as  aforesaid. 

72.  Whereas  Disputes  and  Controversies  have  for  many 
Years  subsisted  between  His  Majesty's  loving  Subjects  of 
the  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay  and  New  Hampshire 
in  New  England,  in  regard  to  the  Boundaries  between  the 
said  Provinces  And  whereas  His  Majesty  was  pleased  by 
his  Order  in  Council  dated  226.  January  1735,  to  direct  that 
Commissioners  should  be  appointed  to  mark  out  the  divid- 
ing Line  between  the  said  Provinces,  and  also  by  His  Order 
in  Council  of  the  9th  February  1736,  to  direct  that  a  Com- 
mission should  be  prepared  and  passed  under  the  Great 
Seal  (which  said  Commission  was  accordingly  issued  out) 
for  Authorizing  such  Commissioners  to  meet  within  a  limited 
time,  "to  mark  out  the  Dividing  Line  between  the  said 
Provinces,  with  Liberty  to  either  Party  who  should  think 
themselves  aggrieved  by  the  Determination  of  the  said 
Commissioners,  to  appeal  therefrom  to  His  Majesty  in 
Council ;  Which  said  Commissioners  did  make  their  Report 
in  the  following  Words." 

"In  Pursuance  of  His  Majesty's  aforesaid  Commission, 
the  Court  took  under  Consideration  the  Evidences,  Pleas 
and  Allegations  offered  and  made  by  each  Party,  referring 
to  the  Controversy  depending  between  them,  and  upon 
Mature  Advisement  on  the  whole,  a  Doubt  arose  in  point 
of  Law,  And  the  Court  thereupon  came  to  the  following 
Resolution  Vizt. 

"That  if  the  Charter  of  King  William  and  Queen  Mary, 
dated  October  the  7th  in  the  third  Year  of  their  Reign, 
grants  to  the  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  all  the 
Lands  which  were  granted  by  the  Charter  of  King  Charles 
the  first,  dated  March  the  4th  in  the  fourth  Year  of  his 
Reign,  to  the  late  Colony  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  lying 
to  the  Northward  of  Merrimack  River,  Then   the   Court 

69 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

adjudge  and  determine  that  a  Line  shall  run  Parallel  with 
the  said  River  at  the  Distance  of  three  English  Miles  North, 
from  the  Mouth  of  the  said  River,  beginning,  at  the  Southerly 
Side  of  the  Black  Rocks,  so  called,  at  low  Water  Mark,  and 
from  thence  to  run  to  the  Crotch  or  Parting  of  the  said  River, 
where  the  Rivers  of  Pemigewasset  and  Winnepiseokee  meet, 
and  from  thence  due  North  three  English  Miles,  and  from 
thence  due  West  towards  the  South  Sea  until  it  meets  with 
His  Majesty's  other  Governments  which  shall  be  the  Boun- 
dary, or  dividing  Line  between  the  said  Provinces  of  the 
Massachusets  Bay  and  New  Hampshire  on  that  side ;  But 
if  othervv^ise,  then  the  Court  Adjudge  and  determine,  that 
a  Line  on  the  Southerly  Side  of  New  Hampshire  beginning 
at  the  Distance  of  three  English  Miles  North  from  the 
Southerly  Side  of  the  Black  Rocks  aforesaid  at  low  Water 
Mark,  and  from  thence  running  due  West  up  Into  the  main 
Land  towards  the  South  Sea,  until  it  meets  with  His  Majesty's 
other  Governments,  shall  be  the  Boundary  Line  between 
the  said  Provinces  on  the  side  aforesaid ;  Which  point  in 
doubt  with  the  Court,  as  aforesaid,  they  humbly  Submit 
to  the  wise  Consideration  of  his  most  Sacred  Majesty  In  his 
Privy  Council,  to  be  determined  according  to  His  Royal 
Will  and  Pleasure  therein ;  And  as  to  the  Northern  Boun- 
dary between  the  said  Provinces,  the  Court  resolve  and 
determine  that  the  dividing  Line  shall  pass  up  thro  the 
Mouth  of  PIscataqua  Harbour,  and  up  the  Middle  of  the 
River,  into  the  River  of  Newickwannock  (Part  of  which  is 
now  called  Salmon  Falls)  and  thro  the  Middle  of  the  same  to 
the  furthest  Head  thereof,  and  from  thence  North,  two  De- 
grees Westerly  until  One  hundred  and  twenty  Miles  be 
finished  from  the  Mouth  of  PIscataqua  Harbour  aforesaid, 
or  until  It  meets  with  His  Majesty's  other  Governments, 
And  that  the  dividing  Line  shall  part  the  Isles  of  Shoals, 
and  run  thro  the  Middle  of  the  Harbour  between  the  Is- 
lands to  the  Sea  on  the  Southerly  Side ;  And  that  the  South- 
westly  Part  of  the  said  Islands  shall  lye  In  and  be  accounted 
Part  of  the  Province  of  New  Hampshire,  And  that  the  North 
easterly  Part  thereof  shall  lye  In  and  be  accounted  Part  of 

70 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  and  be  held  and  en- 
joyed by  the  said  Provinces  respectively  in  the  same  Manner 
as  they  now  do,  and  have  heretofore  held  and  enjoyed  the 
same ;  —  And  the  Court  do  further  adjudge  that  the  Cost 
and  Charge  arising  by  taking  out  the  Commission,  as  also 
of  the  Commissioners  and  their  Ofhcers,  Vizt.  The  two 
Clerks,  Surveyor  and  Waiter,  for  their  Travelling  Expences 
and  attendance  in  the  Execution  of  the  same,  be  equally 
born  by  the  said  Provinces." 

And  whereas  Appeals  from  the  Determination  of  the  said 
Commissioners  have  been  laid  before  His  Majesty,  by  the 
Agents  for  the  respective  Provinces  of  the  Massachusets 
Bay  and  New  Hampshire,  which  said  Appeals  have  been 
heard  before  the  Committee  of  Council  for  hearing  Appeals 
from  the  Plantations,  who,  after  having  Considered  the 
whole  Matter,  and  heard  all  Parties  concerned  therein,  did 
report  unto  his  Majesty  as  their  Opinion,  "That  the  North- 
ern Boundaries  of  the  said  Province  of  the  Massachusets 
Bay  are  and  be  a  Similar  Curve  Line,  pursuing  the  Course 
of  Merrimack  River  at  three  Miles  distance  on  the  North 
Side  thereof,  beginning  at  the  Atlantick  Ocean,  and  ending 
at  a  Point  due  North  of  a  Place  in  the  Plan  returned  by  the 
said  Commissioners  called  Pantucket  Falls,  and  a  Strait 
Line  drawn  from  thence  due  West  cross  the  said  River,  un- 
til It  meets  with  his  Majesty's  other  Governments,  And 
that  the  rest  of  the  Commissioners  said  Report  or  Deter- 
mination be  Affirmed  by  His  Majesty,  which  said  Report  of 
the  said  Committee  of  Council,  His  Majesty  hath  been 
pleased  with  the  Advice  of  His  Privy  Council  to  Approve, 
and  to  Declare,  Adjudge  and  Order,  That  the  Northern 
Boundaries  of  the  said  Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay 
are  and  be  a  Similar  curve  Line,  pursuing  the  Course  of 
Merrimack  River  at  three  Miles  distance  on  the  North 
Side  thereof,  beginning  at  the  Atlantick  Ocean  and  ending 
at  a  Point  due  North  of  a  Place  in  the  Plan,  returned  by 
the  said  Commissioners  called  Pantucket  Falls,  and  a  Strait 
Line  drawn  from  thence  due  West  cross  the  said  River,  till 
it  meets  with  His  Majesty's  other  Governments,   and   to 

n 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Affirm  the  rest  of  the  Commissrs.  said  Report  or  Determina- 
tion ;  Whereof  the  Governor  or  Commander  in  Chief  of 
His  Majesty's  said  Provinces  for  the  time  being,  as  also 
His  Majesty's  respective  Councils  and  Assemblies  thereof, 
and  all  others  whom  it  may  concern,  are  to  take  Notice." 

It  is  therefore  His  Majesty's  Will  and  Pleasure,  and  you 
are  hereby  required  and  enjoined,  under  Pain  of  His  Majes- 
ty's Highest  Displeasure  and  of  being  removed  from  your 
Government,  to  take  especial  Care  that  His  Majesty's 
Commands  in  this  Behalf  be  executed  in  the  most  effectual 
and  expeditious  Manner,  to  the  End  that  His  Majesty's 
good  Intentions  for  promoting  the  Peace  and  Quiet  of  the 
said  Provinces  may  not  be  frustrated  or  delayed.  You  are 
likewise  hereby  directed  to  communicate  this  Instruction  to 
the  Council  and  House  of  Representatives  of  His  Majesty's 
said  Province  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay,  and  to  cause  the 
same  to  be  entred  in  the  Council  Books  thereof. 

And  for  your  further  Information  herein  An  Authentick 
Copy  of  the  Plan  returned  by  the  said  Commissioners  is 
hereunto  annex'd. 

73.  You  are  upon  all  Occasions  to  send  unto  His  Majesty 
by  One  of  His  Principal  Secretaries  of  State,  and  to  the 
Commissioners  for  Trade  and  Plantations  a  particular  Ac- 
count of  all  your  Proceedings  and  the  Condition  of  Affairs 
within  your  Government. 

I.  C. 

G. 

R.  L.  and  A. 

M. 

Endorsed  : 

Draught  of  Instructions 

to  William  Shirley  Esqr.  Govr. 
of  Massachusets  Bay. 
Sepr.  loth  1741. 

^  The  initials  of  the  signers  are  in  another  hand. 

72 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

THE   LORDS   JUSTICES   TO   WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  ^ 

[Instructions  for  Trade] 

By  the  Lords  Justices 

J.  Cant  Orders  and  Instructions  to 

Grafton  William   Shirley  Esqr.  His 

Richmond,  Lenox  and  Aubigny     Majesty's  Captain  General 
Montagu  and  Governor  in  Chief  in 

Hay.  and  over  the  Province  and 

Territory  of  the  Massachu- 
sets  Bay,  in  New  England, 
in  America,    In   pursuance 
of    several    Laws    relating 
to  the  Trade  and  Naviga- 
tion   of    the    Kingdom    of 
Great  Britain  and  His  Maj- 
esty's   Colonies    and    Plan- 
tations in  America.     Given 
at  Whitehall  the  lOth  day 
of  September   1741.  in  the 
fifteenth  Year  of  His  Maj- 
esty's Reign. ^ 
First.    You  shall  inform  yourself  of  the  principal  Laws 
relating  to  the  Plantation  Trade,  Vizt.  the  Jet  for  the  en- 
couraging and  encreasing  of  Shipping  and  Navigation,  made 
in  the  12th  Year  of  the  Reign  of  King  Charles  the  Second, 
the  Act  for  preventing  Frauds  and  regulating  Abuses  in  His 
Majesty^s  Customs,  made  in  the  14th  Year  of  the  said  King's 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  199,  171-205.  A  transcript  Is  In  the  Library 
of  Congress.  These  Instructions  for  Trade  are  verbally  the  same 
as  those  given  Benning  Wentworth,  Governor  of  New  Hampshire, 
July  21,  1741. 

^  The  names  of  the  Lords  Justices  and  the  date  and  place  of 
signature  are  in  a  different  hand  from  the  remainder  of  the  manu- 
script. 

73 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Reign,  the  Act  for  the  Encouragement  of  Trade  made  in  the 
15th  Year  of  the  said  King's  Reign,  the  Act  to  prevent  the 
planting  of  Tobacco  in  England  and  for  regulating  the  Planta- 
tion Trade,  made  in  the  22d  and  23d  Years  of  the  said  King's 
Reign,  and  continued  by  a  Clause  in  the  Act  against  clandes- 
tine Running  of  Goods,  and  for  the  more  effectual  preventing 
of  Frauds  relating  to  the  Customs,  made  in  the  5th  Year  of 
the  Reign  of  his  late  Majesty,  the  Act  for  the  Encouragement 
of  the  Greenland  and  Eastland  Trades,  and  for  the  better  se- 
curing the  Plantation  Trade,  made  in  the  25th  Year  of  the 
said  King  Charles  Reign,  the  Act  for  preventing  Frauds  and 
regulating  Abuses  in  the  Plantation  Trade,  made  in  the  7th 
and  8th  Years  of  the  Reign  of  King  William  the  3d,  the  Act 
to  permit  the  Exportation  of  Irish  Linnen  Cloth  to  the  Planta- 
tions etca.  made  in  the  3d  and  4th  Years  of  the  Reign  of 
Queen  Anne,  and  continued  and  explained  by  an  Act  passed 
in  the  3d  Year  of  His  Late  Majesty's  Reign  for  continuing  the 
Liberty  of  exporting  Irish  Linnen  Cloth  to  the  British 
Plantations  in  America,  Duty  free,  the  Act  for  an  Union 
of  the  two  Kingdoms  of  England  and  Scotland,  made  in  the  5th 
Year  of  the  said  Queen's  Reign,  in  which  are  certain  Articles 
relating  to  the  plantation  Trade  more  particularly  the  4th 
5th  and  6th,  the  Act  for  ascertaining  the  Rates  of  foreign  Coins 
in  Her  Majesty^ s  Plantations  in  America,  made  in  the  6th 
Year  of  the  same  Queen's  Reign,  the  Act  for  the  Encourage- 
ment of  the  Trade  to  America,  made  in  the  same  Year  of  the 
said  Queen's  Reign,  A  Clause  in  the  Act  for  continuing  several 
Impositions  and  Duties  upon  Goods  imported  etca.  and  to 
limit  a  time  for  prosecution  upon  certain  Bonds  given  by  Mer- 
chants, called  in  the  Act,  Plantation  Bonds,  made  in  the  8th 
Year  of  the  same  Queen's  Reign,  the  Act  for  the  preservation  of 
white  and  other  Pine  Trees  growing  in  Her  Majesty^ s  Colonies 
of  New  Hampshire,  the  Massachusetts  Bay,  and  Province  of 
Main,  Rhode  Island,  and  Providence  Plantation,  the  Narragan- 
set  Country,  or  King's  Province  and  Connecticut,  in  New  Eng- 
land, a7id  New  York  and  New  Jersey,  in  America,  for  the  Mast- 
ing her  Majty's  Navy,  made  in  the  9th  Year  of  the  said  Queen's 
Reign,  the  Act  against  clandestine    running  of   uncustomed 

74 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Goods,  and  for  the  more  effectual  preventing  of  Frauds  relating 
to  the  Customs,  made  in  the  5th  year  of  His  late  Majesty's 
Reign,  the  Act  giving  further  Encouragement  for  the  Importa- 
tion of  Naval  Stores  and  for  other  Purposes  therein  mentioned 
made  in  the  8th  Year  of  his  said  late  Majesty's  Reign,  the 
Act  for  the  more  effectual  Suppression  of  piracy,  made  in  the 
same  year  of  his  said  late  Majesty's  Reign,  the  Act  for  the 
better  Preservation  of  His  Majesty's  Woods  in  America,  and 
for  the  Encouragement  of  the  Importation  of  Naval  Stores  from 
thence  etc,  made  in  the  2d  Year  of  his  present  Majesty's 
Reign,  the  Act  Jor  importing  from  his  Majesty's  Plantations 
in  America  directly  into  Ireland,  Goods  not  Enumerated  in  any 
Act  of  Parliament,  made  in  the  4th  Year  of  his  present  Maj- 
esty's Reign,  as  explained,  by  an  Act  pass'd  in  the  5th  year 
of  the  same  Reign,  the  Act  for  the  more  easy  Recovery  of  Debts 
in  His  Majesty's  Plantations  and  Colonies  in  America,  made 
in  the  5th  Year  of  the  same  Reign,  the  Act  to  prevent  the 
Exportation  of  Hats  out  of  any  of  His  Majesty's  Colonies  or 
Plantations  in  America,  and  to  restrain  the  Number  of  Appren- 
tices taken  by  the  Hatmakers  in  the  said  Colonies  or  Planta- 
*made  in  the  same  Year  tions,  etc.  made  in  the  Same  year 
of  His  Majty's  Reign,  the  of  His  Majesty's  Reign,  the  Act 
Act  for  the  better  securing  for  encouraging  the  Growth  of 
and  encouraging  the  Trade  Coffee  in  His  Majesty's  Planta- 
0/  His  Majesty's  Sugar  tions  in  America*  mSidQ  in  the  6th. 
Colonies  in  America,^  Year    of    His    Majesty's    Reign, 

And  the  Act  for  the  further  en- 
couraging and  regulating  the  Manufacture  of  British  Sail 
Cloth,  and  for  the  more  effectual  securing  the  Duties  now  pay- 
able on  Foreign  Sail  Cloth,  imported  into  this  Kingdom,  made 
in  the  9th  year  of  His  Majesty's  Reign.  All  which  Laws  you 
will  herewith  receive,  and  you  shall  take  a  solemn  Oath  to  do 
your  utmost,  that  all  the  Clauses,  Matters  and  Things  con- 
tained in  the  before  recited  Acts,  and  in  all  other  Acts  of 
Parliament  now  in  force,  or  that  hereafter  shall  be  made 
relating  to  His  Majesty's  Colonies  or  Plantations,  be  punc- 

^  This  note  of  omission  is  in  a  different  hand  from  the  main  body 
of  the  manuscript. 

75 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

tually  and  bona  fide  observed,  according  to  the  true  intent 
and  meaning  thereof. 
Endorsed : 

Draught  of  Orders  and  Instructions 
to  William  Shirley  Esqr.  Governor 
of  Massachusets  Bay. 
,  Sepr.  loth.  1741. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

Boston,  N.  England,  Octr.  17th,  1741. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

His  Majestys  last  additional  Instruction  to  Govr  Bel- 
cher for  not  giving  his  Assent  to  any  Act  for  emitting  of  Bills 
of  Credit  in  lieu  of  Money  without  having  a  Clause  inserted 
in  it  That  It  shall  not  take  Effect  till  It  is  approved  of  by 
His  Majesty  makes  it  necessary  for  me  to  represent  the  pres- 
ent State  of  the  Province  and  transmit  to  Your  Grace  a 
Copy  of  the  Supply  Bill  which  passed  both  Houses  this 
Session  with  a  Copy  of  my  Speech  to  Them  thereupon  con- 
taining my  Reasons  for  not  giving  my  Assent  to  it  and  my 
proposed  Amendments  of  it. 

As  to  the  State  of  the  Province  the  Treasury  is  empty ; 
Castle  William  the  Chief  Fortress  and  Key  of  the  Province 
and  all  its  other  Garrisons  Forts  and  Fortifications  are  out  of 
Repair  and  in  a  defenceless  Condition  and  in  Danger  of 
being  deserted  by  the  Officers  and  Soldiers  to  whom  Arrears 
of  Wages  are  due  as  there  is  to  all  the  Civil  Offices  of  the 
Government ;  And  there  is  such  a  settled  aversion  in  the 
Majority  of  the  House  of  Representatives  to  the  inserting  a 
suspending  Clause  in  Their  Money  Bills  misconceiving  the 
Instruction  to  be  contrary  to  their  Charter  and  destructive 
of   all  their  Privileges,  That   they  seem   utterly  regardless 

^  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  883.     An  early  effort  for  sound  money. 

76 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  any  Consequences  which  may  ensue  upon  their  Refusal 
to  comply  with  it;  And  should  a  Warr  with  France  break 
out  in  the  Spring  my  Refusal  to  give  my  Assent  to  a  Supply 
Bill  without  a  Suspending  Clause  in  it  might  be  of  fatal  Con- 
sequence to  the  Province.  Wherefore  as  it  seemed  to  me  to 
be  more  for  His  Majestys  Service  That  this  Bill  should  be 
laid  before  him  for  His  previous  Approbation  of  it  before 
it  Is  passed  than  under  the  present  Circumstances  of  the 
Province  to  insist  further  upon  the  Inserting  of  a  suspending 
Clause  tin  I  received  His  Majestys  Directions  therein. 

I  have  transmitted  a  copy  of  the  Bill  to  your  Grace  with  my 
proposed  Amendments  of  It  which  I  make  no  great  Doubt  of 
prevailing  In,  If  I  would  accept  Them  without  the  suspending 
Clause,  the  bare  Mention  of  which  in  my  Speech  has  so  dis- 
concerted the  House  of  Representatives  and  taken  away  all 
Their  Disposition  for  the  publick  Service  that  I  thought  it 
most  prudent  at  their  Request  to  give  them  a  short  Recess, 
and  lose  no  time  In  laying  before  Your  Grace  what  in  my 
humble  Opinion  will  be  for  His  Majestys  Service  at  this 
Juncture.  My  Objections  against  the  Bill  and  what  I  con- 
ceive to  be  the  proper  Amendments  are  fully  expressed  in  my 
Speech  to  the  Assembly  upon  that  Occasion,  And  if  the  Bill 
was  amended  in  the  manner  I  have  mentioned  in  my  pro- 
posed Amendments  tho'  the  Act  is  exceptionable  in  other 
Matters  yet  there  would  be  a  sure  Fund  of  Silver  and  Gold 
for  redeeming  the  Bills  without  Loss  to  the  Possessors  at  the 
End  of  the  Periods ;  and  the  great  Dishonesty  and  mischief 
of  the  Bills  would  be  taken  away  when  such  Provision  was 
made  as  I  have  proposed,  That  the  Creditor  should  receive 
the  full  Value  of  his  Debt  which  It  was  of  at  the  time  of  its 
being  contracted.  For  in  such  Case  tho'  the  Bills  should  be 
depreciated  Yet  no  Person  could  be  Injured  by  It  as  every 
Creditor  would  receive  the  Sterling  Value  of  his  Debt,  tho' 
It  was  In  depreciated  Bills ;  and  this  seems  fully  to  answer  all 
the  Complaints  of  the  Merchants  against  the  Bills  and  every 
End  of  all  His  Majestys  Instructions  for  preventing  the 
Mischief  of  them  And  It  would  establish  them  upon  an  honest 
foot,  which  they  never  have  yet  stood  upon  since  the  first 

77 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Emission  of  them  in  the  Province,  and  ease  His  Majesty  for 
the  future  of  all  Complaints  against  them  and  the  People 
here  of  all  their  Discontents  and  restore  a  Spirit  of  Honesty 
among  them  both  in  their  publick  and  private  Dealings  which 
has  hitherto  been  very  much  sunk  by  the  badness  of  the  bills. 
Wherefore  I  humbly  submit  it  to  Your  Grace's  Consider- 
ation whether  it  might  not  be  for  His  Majestys  Service 
in  this  Instance  that  I  should  be  permitted  in  case  the  Assem- 
bly will  amend  the  Act  in  the  Particulars  mentioned  in  my 
second  third  and  fourth  Objections  in  my  Speech  or  at  least 
in  the  second  and  fourth  of  them  without  their  Inserting  the 
suspending  Clause  in  it  as  its  having  been  laid  before  His 
Majesty  in  this  manner  does  indeed  in  some  measure  answer 
the  End  of  a  Suspending  Clause.  If  Your  Grace  should  be 
of  that  Opinion  I  could  I  think  depend  upon  their  conceding 
to  all  the  Amendments  proposed  by  me  except  perhaps  the 
Fixing  of  less  distant  Periods  for  Redeeming  the  Bills  of 
Credit ;  and  that  they  would  also  forthwith  make  Provision 
for  calling  in  all  the  Old  Bills  now  outstanding  They  are 
already  influenced  to  make  Sterling  the  Standard  of  the 
Value  of  their  Bills  and  thereby  establish  the  Rates  of  the 
Silver  Coins  agreeable  to  the  6th  of  Queen  Anne  for  the  future 
which  is  a  Compliance  with  the  first  part  of  the  above  men- 
tioned Instruction,  and  is  what  they  never  did  before  and  will 
prevent  much  Confusion.  The  Sum  to  be  emitted  by  this 
Act  is  indeed  £36000  Sterling  which  is  £6000  more  than  what 
is  allowed  by  His  Majestys  Instructions  to  be  Current  at 
the  same  time ;  but  the  £6000  is  to  defray  the  extraordinary 
Charge  they  have  been  and  will  be  at  for  His  Majestys 
Service  in  promoting  the  Expedition  which  I  presume  will 
be  allowed  them,  and  cannot  be  deemed  contrary  to  the 
Intent  of  the  Instruction.  This  Permission  if  consistent 
with  His  Majestys  Service  in  other  respects  would  also  put 
me  into  a  Capacity  of  being  more  serviceable  by  my  Influ- 
ence with  the  People  with  whom  it  would  much  ingratiate 
me  to  be  thought  instrumental  in  obtaining  it  and  beget  or 
rather  fully  establish  the  Opinion  they  have  of  my  being 
sincerely  disposed  to  promote  the  Welfare  of  the  Province. 

78 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

And  I  am  not  without  hopes  that  the  Provinces  ready  dis- 
position for  Flis  Majestys  Service  in  their  late  Encouragement 
of  the  Recruits  may  be  a  Circumstance  in  their  favour  with 
His  Majesty ;  which  Circumstance  if  taken  notice  of  as  such, 
and  that  my  Recommendation  of  it  was  acceptable  It  would 
have  a  good  Effect  upon  their  future  Behaviour  in  making 
them  more  dependant  upon  their  Governors. 

^C  ^C  Mc  ^Ic  ^Z  ^£  sif 

As  to  the  malignant  Spirit  raised  by  the  Land  Bank  Scheme 
in  the  Province  it  is  now  vanished  and  I  have  brought  the 
Directors  some  of  whom  are  the  most  leading  Members  in 
the  House  of  Representatives  to  come  into  publick  Votes  at 
three  or  four  general  Meetings  of  all  the  partners  in  it  for 
taking  Measures  to  put  an  Entire  End  to  the  Scheme  and 
disincorporate  themselves  ;  and  they  have  destroyed,  they 
inform  me,  their  Plates  and  called  in  all  their  Bills,  which  are 
issued  out,  near  £37000  of  which  have  been  brought  in  and 
consumed  to  Ashes ;  And  it  is  expected  by  them  that  all  the 
Bills  will  soon  be  brought  in  to  be  burnt :  And  indeed  I  have 
found  some  of  them  in  the  House  of  Representatives,  who  will 
be  very  Instrumental  in  curing  this  publick  Manufactory 
Scheme  or  Land  Bank  of  the  Legislature  projected  in  their 
Supply  Bill  and  will  for  the  future,  be  zealously  attach'd  to 
His  Majestys  Service,  and  the  true  Interest  of  the  Country. 

If  I  might  be  so  happy  as  to  receive  Directions  for  my 
Conduct  in  the  Supply  of  the  Treasury  by  one  of  the  first 
spring  Ships,  It  would  be  much  for  the  Ease  of  the  Province. 

2tf  ^k  Hi  Hz  $f^  rfC  dC 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE! 

My  Lord  Duke,         ^°^^°"'  ^^  ^^S^^'  J"">^'  "3^'  ''7^'^^' 

On  the   i6th  Instant  I  had  the  Honour  to  receive  His 

Majy's  Instructions,  to  which  I  shall  strictly  conform  in  my 

1  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  29. 
79 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Administration  of  His  Governmt  here ;  and  have  already,  in 
obedience  to  the  23d  of  'em  respecting  the  Govr's  Salary,  rec- 
ommended it  in  the  most  strong  Terms  to  the  Genl  Court  to 
settle  the  Allowance  therein  proposed  by  His  Majy  upon  me 
and  my  Successors  in  this  Governmt ;  And  I  am  exceedingly 
oblig'd  to  your  Grace's  Goodness  in  directing  the  latter  part  of 
that  Instruction  to  be  so  qualified,  as  that  I  am  left  at  liberty, 
in  case  the  Assembly  should  persist  in  their  Refusal  to  settle 
the  Salary,  to  take  an  Annual  Allowance  from  'em  of  the 
Value  of  £1000  Sterl.  as  they  shall  vote  it  from  year  to  year, 
untill  His  Majy's  pleasure  shall  be  signified  to  the  contrary. 

The  Omission  of  that  Instruction  out  of  His  Majy's  to 
me  whereby  Govr.  Belcher  was  restrain'd  from  emitting 
Bills  of  publick  Credit  for  the  support  of  the  Gov- 
ernmt, without  a  Suspending  Clause  being  inserted  in  it,  was 
very  seasonable  for  the  Province  at  this  Juncture ;  and  I 
have  been  thereby  enabled  to  relieve  all  the  Necessities  of 
the  Governmt,  and  to  bring  the  Assembly  to  issue  out  their 
Bills  upon  a  better  foot  than  was  ever  yet  done  in  the  Prov- 
ince, by  providing  an  effectual  Remedy  for  all  Creditors 
against  future  Depreciations  of  the  Bills  ;  the  want  of  which 
hitherto  has  been  the  chief,  if  not  only  Ground  and  Occasion 
of  all  the  Mischiefs  of  our  paper  Currency,  of  the  Complaints 
at  home  against  it,  and  of  His  Majy's  Instructions  from  time 
to  time  for  restraining  it ;  And  I  have  likewise  brought  the 
Assembly  to  make  such  provision  in  their  new  Supply  Bill 
for  drawing  in  all  the  Bills  of  Credit,  both  those  extant  and 
those  to  be  emitted,  at  certain  periods,  which  it  is  not  now 
left  in  their  power  to  postpone  (as  it  has  hitherto  been)  that 
the  publick  Faith  is  also  better  secured  than  was  ever  before 
done ;  which  two  things,  I  hope  may  give  as  good  Satis- 
faction to  the  British  Merchants  and  Traders  to  this  place, 
as  it  has  done  to  the  Province  in  general. 

A  punctual  Obedience  has  been  paid  to  the  Act  of  Parlia- 
ment for  suppressing  the  Land-bank  Scheme  by  the  Direc- 
tors of  it,  who  have  got  above  one  third  part  of  their  Bills 
in  and  consum'd  'em  to  ashes,  and  are  daily  endeavouring 
to  draw  in  the  Remainder  of  'em ;    And  as  a  very  consid- 

80 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

erable  part  of  the  House  of  Representatives  consists  of  per- 
sons, who  were  concern'd  in  that  Scheme  or  Favourers  of 
it ;  I  have  used  all  my  Influence  to  reclaim  'em  to  the  true 
Service  of  His  Majy  and  the  Country,  in  which  I  havu  suc- 
ceeded so  far  as  to  bring  'em  off  from  a  very  bad  Money 
Bill  which  had  pass'd  both  Houses  to  join  in  passing  these  two 
new  Acts,  which  I  look  upon  to  be  of  more  Service  to  the 
Country  in  the  Points,  I  have  mention'd,  than  all  the  Acts 
of  Assembly  that  have  been  made  since  the  first  Emission 
of  Bills  of  Credit  here ;  which  Method  of  laying  the  Malig- 
nant Spirit,  that  I  found  in  these  people  at  first,  and  bring- 
ing 'em  into  the  Service  of  the  publick,  instead  of  irritating 
'em  and  driving  'em  out  of  it  by  that  means,  I  hope  will 
not  be  dis-approved  of  by  His  Majesty. 

Since  my  last  to  your  Grace  150  Recruits  have  been  raised 
here  for  the  Service  of  the  Expedition,  about  100  of  which 
are  embark'd  to  proceed  for  Cuba  or  other  place  of  Ren- 
dezvouze :  and  as  the  Treasury  will  not  have  any  Money 
in  it  these  two  Months,  I  have  supply'd  the  Province's 
part  of  the  Bounty  Money,  &  towards  transporting  'em  till 
I  can  be  reimbursed  out  of  the  Treasury ;  I  am  not  with- 
out hopes  of  sending  another  Company  of  100  Men  at  least, 
and  believe  upon  the  whole  I  may  possibly  have  raised  more 
Recruits  within  this  Province,  than  will  be  sent  from  any 
of  the  other  Northern  Colonies ;  tho  a  very  troublesome  con- 
test with  the  People  about  the  Enlisting  of  bought  Servants 
has  been  raised  here  which  has  much  embarrass'd  the  Service 
and  made  it  extremely  fatiguing :  This  has  occasion'd  the 
Loss  and  Desertion  of  several  Men  by  the  ill  practices  of  the 
Masters,  which  is  owing  to  their  having  been  permitted  upon 
the  raising  of  the  Levies  the  last  year  to  take  their  Servants 
by  force  out  of  their  Ranks,  as  they  muster'd,  without  Con- 
troul ;  which  I  have  utterly  opposed,  and  insisted  upon 
keeping  every  Servant  that  was  not  secreted. 

This  and  my  refusing  my  Consent  to  the  first  Supply  Bill 
when  the  Province  was  in  great  want  of  money,  and  my  insist- 
ing upon  the  Suspending  Clause,  till  I  was  acquaint'd  that 
His  Majy  had  dispens'd  with  it,  together  with  some  other  un- 

VOL.  I  —  G  81 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

popular  Points  which  happen'd  to  besett  the  Chair  when  I  first 
came  into  it,  are  now  got  over,  I  hope,  without  Disadvantage 
to  me  with  the  People,  since  the  Genl  Assembly  three  days 
ago  voted  an  Address  to  His  Majy,  in  which  there  are  strong 
Expressions  of  their  Esteem  and  Affection  for  me ;  And  I 
think  I  have  reason  to  depend  upon  their  complying  as  far 
in  the  Affair  of  the  Salary,  as  good  Will  can  carry  'em. 

Some  time  ago  I  acquainted  your  Grace  that  I  had  set- 
tled Sr  Thos  Prendergast's  Dispute  with  Mr  Auchmuty, 
which  your  Grace  did  me  the  Honour  to  recommend  to  me ; 
And  I  shall  now  very  suddenly  have  the  pleasure  to  remit 
him  the  Money  due  to  him,  which  tho  I  have  the  Security 
of  Mr  Auchmuty's  whole  Estate  for  it  here,  is  very  diffi- 
cult to  be  raised  out  of  it. 

I  have  now  got  the  Judges  of  the  Superior  Court  to  make 
Mr  Pemberton  one  of  their  Clerks,  which  is  a  post  worth 
£700  p  anii  paper  Money  or  about  £130  Stert,  according 
to  an  exact  Calculation  of  it's  profits  by  his  Brother  Clerks, 
provided  he  will  do  the  Business  of  it  himself ;  and  is  al- 
most equal  to  the  Profits  of  the  Naval  Office,  as  they  were 
when  he  first  had  it,  he  having  given  Bond  to  Col.  Shute 
and  Mr  Yeamans  that  a  Friend  of  theirs  should  enjoy  one 
third  part  of  them. 

As  I  have  your  Grace's  Approbation  of  my  Behaviour 
much  at  heart,  not  only  because  I  am  accountable  to  your 
Grace  for  it,  but  as  my  good  Behaviour  is  the  only  Return, 
I  can  make  your  Grace  for  your  exceeding  great  Goodness 
and  Favour  to  me,  &  I  shall  esteem  the  continuance  of  your 
Grace's  good  Opinion  and  patronage  of  me  my  chief  Honour 
and  Happiness,  it  shall  be  the  Endeavour  of  my  Life  in 
every  part  of  my  Duty  to  approve  myself  to  your  Grace, 
My  Lord  Duke 

Yr  Grace's   most  Devoted,   & 
most   obedt   Humble    Servt 
Endorsed:  W.  Shirley. 

Boston  Janry  23d  1741/2 

Governor  Shirley 
'^  April  2d 

82 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   LORDS   OF 
TRADED 

Boston,  N.  Engld,  April  30,  1742. 
My  Lords, 

My  last  to  your  Lordships  inclos'd  the  Copy  of  the  late 
Supply  Act,  which  I  gave  my  consent  to  pursuant  to  the  Lib- 
erty given  me  in  his  Majesty's  Instructions  for  that  purpose, 
as  his  Service  seem'd  necessarily  to  require  that  I  should, 
since  which  I  am  advis'd  that  your  Lordships  seem'd  to 
declare  your  Opinion  to  be  against  any  Emissions  of  Bills 
of  Credit  in  this  Province  :  But  when  your  Lordships  are 
inform'd  that  I  had  no  other  possible  Method  of  putting  the 
ruinous  Fortifications  of  the  Province  into  a  defensible 
Condition,  and  preventing  his  Majesty's  Forts  and  Garri- 
sons from  being  deserted  for  want  of  Cloaths  and  Pay,  and 
promoting  the  raising  of  Recruits  for  his  Majty's  Service 
in  the  Expedition,  I  hope  what  I  have  done  in  the  Supply 
of  the  Treasury  will  not  be  disapproved  of,  especially  as 
I  have  taken  care  to  put  the  Province  Bills  upon  a  better 
foot  than  they  were  ever  emitted  upon  before,  by  securing 
all  private  Creditors  from  being  hurt  by  any  future  de- 
preciating of  those  Bills,  and  putting  it  out  of  the  Assem- 
bly's power  to  postpone  the  drawing  'em  in  beyond  their 
limited  periods  of  payment,  which  new  Regulations  seem  to 
be  the  most  effectual  provision  for  securing  the  publick 
Faith,  and  private  Justice,  that  a  paper  Currency  will  ad- 
mit, and  to  bid  fair  for  curing  the  chief  Mischiefs  and  In- 
conveniencies  arising  from  it  to  the  British  Merchants,  as 
well  as  Creditors  within  the  Province,  and  in  a  great  meas- 
ure to  answer  the  Ends  of  his  Majesty's  Instructions  for 
restraining  it ;  and  I  may  assure  your  Lordships  that  whilst 
the  Government  of  Rhode  Island  are  unrestrain'd  in  their 
Emissions,  all  Restraints  of  that  sort  laid  on  this  Province 
by  his  Majesty  will  prove  ineffectual  to  prevent  the  Mis- 
chiefs  proposed   by  your   Lordships   to  be   thereby  cured. 

iRR.O,  CO.s,  883. 
83 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

For  that  little  Colony  will  of  itself  issue  Bills  enough  to 
supply  all  New  England  with  a  paper  Medium,  and  in  such 
case  the  effect  of  further  Restraints  laid  on  this  Province 
will  only  tend  to  clogg  his  Majys  Government  in  it  with 
Difficulties,  and  subject  the  people  of  it  to  the  necessity 
of  receiving  the  Rhode  Island  Bills  at  any  rate,  than 
which  (according  to  their  present  Scheme)  there  never  was 
a  more  palpable  Cheat  within  his  Majy's  Colonies,  which 
had  the  countenance  of  the  Government  of  the  Colony,  or 
any  unwarrantable  practice  productive  of  more  Evils, 

Your  Lordships  will  be  pleas'd  to  observe  that  £6000 
of  the  £30,000  was  emitted  for  his  Majesty's  Service  in 
the  Expedition,  and  £6,500  of  it  for  Fortifications;  and 
that  the  Government  had  near  two  Years  Arrears  of  Debt 
at  the  Time  of  passing  the  Acts,  which  very  extraordi- 
nary Expences  made  the  Sum  emitted  to  be  rather  Scanty 
than  large.  In  one  of  my  former  I  made  some  mention  to 
your  Lordships  concerning  the  Effects  of  the  late  Act  of 
Parliament  for  suppressing  the  two  private  Money  Schemes 
call'd  the  Silver  Scheme,  and  the  Land  Bank  or  Manufac- 
tory Scheme,  since  which  many  persons  unhappily  con- 
cern'd  in  both  those  schemes  have  been  in  great  Conster- 
nation and  Distress ;  For  the  Act  has  destroy'd  the  Agree- 
ments and  Contracts,  which  pass'd  between  the  Directors 
and  partners  of  each  Company,  and  has  subjected  every 
person  concern'd  in  'em  to  the  Demands  of  all  the  Pos- 
sessors of  the  Bills ;  by  which  means  it  has  happen'd  that 
the  honester  part  of  each  Company,  who  have  comply'd 
with  the  Directions  of  the  Act  by  bringing  in  their  Quota's 
of  the  Bills  to  be  consumed  still  remain  exposed  to  the  De- 
mands of  the  Possessors  of  the  Outstanding  Bills,  and  all 
penalties  of  the  Act,  and  have  at  the  same  time  lost  all 
remedy  against  their  knavish  partners,  who  obstinately 
refuse  to  redeem  their  respective  Quotas  of  'em,  taking  ad- 
vantage of  their  Bonds,  and  other  securities  for  that  pur- 
pose being  annuU'd  and  made  void  by  the  Act.  To  prevent 
this  Ruin  to  many  private  Families,  and  Confusion  to  the 
publick,  the  Assembly  and  Council,  upon  the  Petition  of  the 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

worthier  part  of  each  of  the  late  Companies,  pass'd  one  of 
the  inclosed  Orders  No  i,  and  most  earnest  soUicitations 
have  been  made  to  me  by  the  Sufferers  to  give  my  Consent 
to  it ;  But  as  the  Remedy  proposed  by  it  is  at  the  Bottom 
founded  upon  the  supposed  Subsistance  of  the  mutual 
Agreements  and  Contracts  made  at  first  between  the  Di- 
rectors and  Partners  of  each  of  the  Companies ;  which  are 
deem'd  and  declared  by  the  Act  of  Parliament  to  be  illegal 
and  void  ab  initio,  I  could  not  possibly  come  into  it ;  But 
to  relieve  the  Sufferers  and  preserve  the  publick  peace  and 
Quiet,  as  far  as  was  in  my  Power,  I  form'd  and  promoted 
the  Inclosed  order  of  the  General  Court  No  2,  which  is  con- 
sistent with  the  Act,  and  I  understand  has  considerably 
alarm'd  the  deficient  partners,  and  will,  I  hope,  help  to  make 
the  Act  of  Parliament  have  its  full  effect  and  draw  in  all 
the  Outstanding  Bills  properly.  As  I  sent  your  Lordships 
a  copy  of  my  first  Message  to  the  Assembly  concerning  the 
Settlement  of  the  Governour's  Salary,  I  now  inclose  Copies 
of  the  subsequent  Messages  between  me  and  the  Assem- 
bly upon  that  head,  which  contain  the  whole  of  their  pre- 
tences for  not  complying  with  his  Majesty's  Instruction, 
and  my  answers  to  'em  :  How  far  the  Province  may  be 
prevail'd  upon  towards  complying  with  the  Instruction, 
the  first  Session  of  the  next  General  Court  will  determine. 
I  have  the  honour  to  be  wth  all  possible  respect 
My  Lords 

Your   most  Obedient  and 
humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Right  Honble  the  Lords  of  Trade  &ca. 

Endorsed: 

Massachusets 
Letter  from  Mr  Shirley    Governor   of    the  Massachusets 
Bay,  dated  at  Boston  the  30th  April     1742,    transmitting 
several  publick  Papers. 

Reed   July    i6thl 
Read     —     21      p742 

85 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY  TO  THE    DUKE    OF 
NEWCASTLE ' 

Boston,  N.  Engld.  May  4.,  1742. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Mrs  Shirley  having  inform'd  me  that  your  Grace  has  been 
pleas'd  to  permit  her  to  give  Security  to  the  Commissioners  of 
the  Customs  for  my  son  as  Naval  Officer  of  this  Province ; 
This  waits  upon  your  Grace  wth  my  GratefuU  acknowledgmts 
for  this  fresh  Instance  of  your  Grace's  Goodness  to  my 
family,  &  to  promise  in  my  son's  behalf  that  he  shall  behave 
in  his  post  wth  Diligence  &  Integrity ;  And  it  gives  me  no 
small  pleasure  to  find  that  as  my  son's  succeeding  Mr  Pember- 
ton  was  at  first  universally  acceptable  to  the  people,  so  yr 
Grace's  Confirmation  of  him  in  it  is  equally  agreable  to 
'em.  Mrs  Shirley  having  also  inform'd  me  that  your  Grace 
was  pleased,  out  of  your  exceeding  Goodness  to  me,  by 
Mr  Western  to  order  her  to  endeavour  to  get  an  Interest  in 
Ld  Wilmington's  favour  for  me,  I  have  made  my  Applica- 
tion to  that  Noble  Lord  so  successfully  that  I  have  reason  to 
hope  his  Lordship  entertains  favourable  sentiments  of  me, 
as  he  has  done  me  the  honour  to  order  Mr  Thomlinson  to 
let  me  know  that  he  would  be  my  Friend. 

I  would  now  mention  to  your  Grace  that  Mr  Willard,  who 
has  been  Secretary  of  this  Province  upwards  of  Twenty 
Years,  wch  post  he  at  first  purchas'd  of  a  Gentleman,  who 
resign'd  in  his  favour,  &  depends  upon  chiefly  for  his  Bread, 
still  continues  to  discharge  it  with  good  Abilities,  Diligence 
and  fidelity ;  and  as  he  is  a  person  of  remarkable  worth,  and 
very  serviceable  to  his  Majesty  and  the  province  in  the 
post  he  sustains ;  and  I  have  certain  Intelligence,  that  a 
Scheme  has  been  form'd  by  Mr  Auchmuty,  who  is  lately 
gone  from  hence  Agent  for  the  Province  to  London,  to 
supplant  this  Gentleman  in  favour  of  another,  by  misrep- 
resenting him  as  too  old  and  infirm  for  his  Oflice ;  I  have 
taken  the  liberty  to  do  him  this  Justice,  esteeming  it  not 

1  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  58. 

86 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

only  an  Act  of  Humanity  to  Mr  Willard,  but  of  Duty  to  his 
Majesty  to  give  your  Grace  notice  of  this  intended  abuse. 
I  am  wth  the  most  Dutifull  sense  of  your  Grace's  Goodness 

^°"^^  My  Lord  Duke 

._  >  Your  Grace's  most  Oblig'd,  and 

most    Devoted,    Humble     Servant 

^V    Shirley 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed: 

Boston.     May  4.  1742 
GovR  Shirley 
3  July  13th 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   LORDS   OF 
TRADE  1 

My  Lords  Boston,  N.  Engld.  June  23d,  1742. 

I  have  before  transmitted  to  your  Lordships  Copies 
of  my  several  Messages  to  the  late  Assembly,  in  which 
in  obedience  to  his  Majy's  23d  Instruction  to  me  I 
recommended  to  'em  in  the  most  pressing  manner,  I  could, 
the  Settlement  of  a  Salary  of  £1000  Sterling  p  ann  on  me 
and  my  Successors  in  this  Government,  and  (upon  their 
Refusal  to  do  that)  on  myself  during  my  Administration, 
and  also  Copies  of  the  Answers  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives in  that  Assembly  to  those  Messages,  and  of  their  Re- 
fusals to  comply  with  the  Settlement  of  the  Salary  either 
way,  together  with  Copies  of  the  two  Grants  which  the 
Assembly  offer'd  me  for  my  Support,  the  first  after  the  rate 
of  about  £750  Sterling  p  ann,  and  the  next  of  about  £950 
Sterling,  both  which  as  they  were  not  conformable  to  his 
Majy's  Instruction  either  in  the  sum  or  manner  of  granting 
it,  I  refus'd,  and  at  the  end  of  the  year,  when  the  Royal 
Charter  required  it,  dissolv'd  that  Assembly  without  ac- 
cepting any  Salary  from  'em.  Upon  the  Meeting  of  the 
present  Assembly  I  recommended  to  them  also  the  Settle- 

ip.  R.  O.,  CO.  5,  883. 
87 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ment  of  the  Salary,  and  now  inclose  to  your  Lordships  a 
Copy  of  their  Vote,  in  which  they  unanimously  refuse  to 
settle  it  in  any  way  :  But  they  have  complied  with  one  part 
of  his  Majesty's  Instruction  by  making  his  Majty  a  Grant 
of  £1300  Bills  of  Credit  of  the  last  Emission,  which  may 
be  deem'd  of  the  value  of  £1000  Sterling  according  to  the 
price  of  silver  and  gold  in  Boston,  tho  not  of  private  Bills 
of  Exchange  payable  in  London,  for  my  support;  which 
Grant  being  the  first  Act  of  their  Session,  I  have  pursuant 
to  the  power  given  me  in  his  Majty's  Instruction  accepted, 
as  I  could  not  entertain,  after  the  full  and  unanimous  votes 
of  two  Houses  of  Representatives  against  the  Settlement  of 
the  Salary,  reasonable  hopes  of  prevailing  for  it  at  present; 
And  I  esteem  it  no  small  point  gained  to  have  prevail'd  with 
the  Assembly  to  raise  their  Grant  from  the  value  of  £680 
Sterling  p  anii,  which  is  what  Mr  Belcher  accepted  from 
'em  for  the  greatest  part  of  his  Administration,  to  £iocmd 
Sterling,  which  is  a  larger  Salary  than  any  Governour  ever 
yet  received  from  'em ;  And  I  hope  it  may  possibly  be  a 
leading  step  towards  the  Settlement  of  it,  tho  I  can't  pre- 
tend to  promise  more  upon  this  point  than  that  I  will  use 
the  utmost  attention  to  find  some  favourable  opportunity  of 
effecting  it,  which  may  possibly  happen  if  the  Harmony  at 
present  subsisting  between  me  and  the  Assembly  should 
continue,  which  I  shall  always  endeavour  to  preserve,  tho 
even  that  must  be  reckon'd  precarious,  as  the  irregular 
things  which  the  Assembly  of  this  Province  frequently 
affects  to  do  in  Government  must  sometimes  unavoidably 
involve  me  in  Disputes  with  'em. 

The  inveterate  Aversion,  which  the  Body  of  the  people 
have  contracted  to  the  Settlement  of  the  Salary  from  their 
Disputes  with  his  Majy's  Governours  about  it,  in  which 
they  have  ever  maintain'd  their  Ground  (tho  Govr  Burnet 
endeavour'd  to  bring  'em  into  it  by  Acts  of  Power,  and  the 
Province  had  reason  to  expect  at  the  same  time  that  his 
Majesty  would  shew  some  Resentment  of  their  Behaviour 
in  that  Affair)  has  made  it  so  unpopular  a  Point  among  the 
Representatives,  who  by  being  annually  elected  are  render'd 

88 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

extremely  dependent  upon  the  Humour  of  their  Constitu- 
ents, that  even  those  Members,  who  are  well  disposed 
to  vote  for  the  Settlement  of  the  Salary,  dare  not  try 
their  strength  or  Interest  in  the  Assembly  upon  it.  And 
if  ever  it  is  effected  without  the  Interposition  of  Parlia- 
ment, it  seems  to  me  that  it  must  be  done,  not  by  dint  of 
Dispute  when  the  people  are  upon  their  Guard  against  it, 
but  at  some  unexpected  Juncture  when  their  settled  af- 
fection for  a  Governour  may  give  the  Representatives  Cour- 
age to  venture  upon  a  short  Settlement  at  first,  out  of  a 
personal  regard  to  him,  which  might  easily  perhaps  be  fol- 
low'd  with  a  Settlement  of  it  during  his  Administration, 
fromi  which  precedent  it  might  be  difficult  for  the  Province 
to  recede  upon  the  Appointment  of  a  new  Governour. 
I  have  the  honour  to  be  wth  the  utmost  Regard 
My  Lords 

your  most  Obedient  and 

most  Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Rt.  Honble  Lds  Commissrs  of  Trade  &ca. 

Endorsed: 

Massachusets 

Letter  from  Mr  Shirley,  Govr  of  Massachusets-Bay, 
dated  at  Boston  the  23d  of  June  1742,  relating  to  his  Dis- 
putes with  the  Assembly,  about  getting  an  Established 
Salary. 

Reed  Augt  30th  I 
Read  Octr  21       |  ^^4^ 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE  OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

Boston,  N.  Engld.   Septr.   15,    1742. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

In  my  Letter  to  your  Grace  of  the  30th  of  Aprill 
I    mention'd    the    Consternation    and   Distress,    which    the 

1  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  67. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Effects  of  the  Act  of  Parliament  lately  made  for  sup- 
pressing the  Land  Bank  or  Manufactory  Company  had 
occasion'd  to  such  of  the  Directors  and  Partners,  as  had  in 
Obedience  to  the  Act  brought  in  their  Quota  of  Manufactory 
Bills  to  be  consumed ;  inasmuch  as  they  still  remain'd  ex- 
posed by  the  Act  to  satisfy  the  Demands  of  the  Possessors 
of  all  the  other  Bills,  and  for  want  of  doing  it  to  incurr  the 
penalty  of  a  premunire,  without  having  any  Remedy  against 
those  dishonest  Partners,  who  stood  out  in  defiance  of  the 
Law;  And  that  to  relieve  such  Persons  as  much  as  might 
be  without  interfering  with  the  Act  of  Parliament,  I  had 
upon  their  earnest  Petition  form'd  and  proposed  an  Order, 
which  afterwards  pass'd  the  General  Court,  and  I  hoped 
would  contribute  towards  bringing  in  the  other  Partners  to 
do  their  Duty  by  a  Compliance  with  the  Act :  Since  which 
that  Order  has  had  the  Effect  to  reduce  the  Outstanding 
Bills,  which  amounted  to  the  Sum  of  £49,250  Lawful  Money, 
to  about  £11,000,  and  brought  in  upwards  of  six  hundred 
of  the  Partners  to  comply  with  the  Act  of  Parliament ;  and 
in  order  to  give  the  finishing  Stroke  to  the  whole  Scheme  by 
compelling  the  Delinquent  Partners  to  redeem  and  bring 
in  the  Remainder  of  the  Outstanding  Bills  to  be  consumed, 
I  have  this  day  given  Orders  to  those  Partners,  who  have 
done  their  Duty,  to  cause  Demands  to  be  made  and  Ac- 
tions commenc'd  against  the  most  Refractory  of  the  Delin- 
quent partners,  in  order  to  bring  'em  within  the  Penalties 
of  the  Act  of  Parliament  upon  their  persisting  to  stand 
out  against  it,  and  caus'd  an  Order  of  Council  to  be 
pass'd  directing  the  Attorney  General  to  prosecute  'em 
forthwith ;  which  Steps  will,  I  doubt  not,  now  put  an  end 
to  this  pernicious  Scheme ;  tho  they  might  some  months 
ago  have  probably  been  attended  with  Disorder  and  other 
ill  Consequences. 

To  apprize  your  Grace  fully  of  the  late  dangerous  Tend- 
ency of  this  Scheme  it  will  be  necessary  to  observe  to  your 
Grace  that  the  late  Land  Bank  Company  consisted  of  be- 
tween eight  and  nine  hundred  partners,  chiefly  Country- 
men,  and  of  some   landed   Estate;    That  the  Merchants, 

90 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

whilst  the  Company  was  forming,  made  Application  to  Mr 
Belcher,  then  Governour  to  prevent  it;  But  upon  his  not 
taking  those  steps  which  he  had  promis'd  'em  to  do,  they 
applied  to  his  Majesty  In  Council  for  Redress  against  the 
Scheme ;  Mr  Belcher  being  alarm'd  at  this  proceeding  of 
the  Merchants  exerted  himself  by  turning  many  of  those, 
who  were  concern'd  In  the  Scheme,  out  of  publick  Posts ; 
But  these  Eiforts  of  his  coming  too  late,  after  large  Quanti- 
ties of  the  Bills  were  emitted  and  dispers'd  all  over  the  Prov- 
ince, and  when  those  Persons,  whom  he  turn'd  out,  were 
really  so  engag'd  by  Covenants  and  Agreements  (which 
the  other  partners  would  not  release  'em  from)  that  it  was 
not  then  in  their  power  to  extricate  themselves,  serv'd  only 
to  exasperate  the  People,  and  begot  so  Malignant  a  Spirit 
in  'em  that  the  Company  and  other  Abettors  of  the  Scheme 
became  almost  formidable  to  this  Government. 

But  as  the  Quantity  of  the  Outstanding  Manufactory 
Bills  Is  now  so  much  reduced,  and  the  Currency  stopp'd, 
and  the  Partners  so  divided  and  broke  among  themselves 
that  the  Delinquent  ones  are  an  inconsiderable  party,  a 
rigorous  Execution  of  the  Act  of  Parliament  grounded  upon 
the  Complaint  of  those,  who  have  comply'd  with  it,  against 
their  Delinquent  Partners  Is  now  the  best  Method  to  sub- 
due those,  who  have  hitherto  stood  out  against  the  Act, 
and  will,  I  doubt  not,  effectually  do  it.  And,  I  think, 
I  may  now  assure  your  Grace  that  this  Scheme  will  have 
been  so  timely  destroy'd,  that  not  one  honest  man  will 
suffer  much  by  It.  And  In  the  mean  time,  I  have  had  the 
satisfaction  to  find  that  those  Members  of  the  House  of 
Representatives,  whose  Relation  to  the  Land  Bank  Scheme 
made  it  expected  that  they  would  have  been  In  opposition 
to  the  Measures  of  the  Government,  have  been  brought  to 
concurr  in  and  promote  his  Majy's  Service  In  several  con- 
siderable points,  which  had  never  been  before  gain'd  from 
former  Assemblies ;  And  that  the  Difficulties  of  the  Prov- 
ince, which  the  House  of  Representatives  in  their  Address 
upon  my  first  coming  into  the  Chair  tell  me  they  were  much 
concern'd  that  my  Accession  to  the  Government  should  be  at- 

91 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

tended  with;  But  that  they  must  not  despair  of  the  Com- 
monwealth  are  surmounted ;  and  a  general  Tranquility  and 
Satisfaction  to  which  this  Province  has  been  an  utter  Stran- 
ger for  these  many  years  past,  seems  to  be  happily  establish'd 
among  the  People. 

Since  my  last  to  your  Grace  I  have  obtain'd  further  Grants 
of  Money  from  the  General  Court  for  finishing  the  Forts  in 
the  Eastern  Parts  of  the  Province,  and  have  prevail'd  on 
'em  to  take  some  steps  towards  providing  for  the  mainte- 
nance of  a  Chaplain  in  Fort  Frederick  at  Pemmaquid,  which 
I  hope  will  be  compleated  at  their  next  Session,  and  will 
perfect  the  Establishment  of  that  Fort.  And  upon  being 
inform'd  that  the  French  Government  in  Canada  have 
lately  refus'd  to  permit  any  English  to  walk  their  streets  at 
Quebeck,  but  had  confined  some  to  their  Rooms,  who  at- 
tempted to  come  there,  I  gave  Orders  for  the  like  Confine- 
ment of  the  French  Men,  who  were  in  this  Town,  and  for 
their  Departure  out  of  the  Province  in  five  days ;  Before 
which  I  prohibited  those  only  from  coming  into  the  Province, 
who  were  suspected  to  come  with  a  View  of  Illicit  Trade  or 
some  other  ill  purpose. 

Mr  Plumptre  has  communicated  your  Grace's  commands 
to  me  concerning  Mr  Willard  the  Secretary  of  this  province, 
I  had  before  taken  the  liberty  to  write  in  his  Favour  to  your 
Grace ;    and  your  Grace's  Commands  will  add  to  the  At- 
tachment which  his  own  Merit  had  given  me  to  him.^ 
I   am  wth   the   most  Dutifull   Regards 
My  Lord  Duke 
Your  Grace's  most  Obedient 
&  most  Devoted,  Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed: 

Boston  New  England  15  Sepr  1742 
GovR  Shirley. 
3.  1st  Novr  pr  Capn  Haines 

^  See  ante,  p.  86. 
92 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY    TO  THE  LORD  PRESIDENT 
OF  THE    COUNCIL! 

[Extract] 

Boston,  Nov.   ist,   1742. 

As  Mr.  Kilby  has  inform'd  me  that  the  Lords  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  Council  have  consider'd  the  Province's  petition 
to  his  Majty  for  Cannon  &ca  to  supply  the  new  Battery 
at  Castle  William,^  (without  which  that  Castle  will  not  be 
a  sufficient  protection  to  the  Province  against  an  Enemy) 
and  that  the  chief  Impediments  to  the  Success  of  the  peti- 
tion are  the  Province's  neglect  to  repair  Pemmaquid  Fort, 
(the  doing  of  which  has  indeed  been  particularly  given  in 
charge,  ever  since  Its'  Demolition  by  the  French,  to  every 
one  of  his  Majty's  Governours  here  by  his  Royal  Instruc- 
tion) and  to  pay  500  Guineas  for  the  same  Number  of  Fusils 
sent  to  the  Province  in  1704;  I  would  beg  leave  to  inform 
your  Lordship  as  to  Pemmaquid  Fort,  that  I  have  taken 
effectual  care  concerning  the  repairs  of  it,  which  upon  a  view 
I  find  are  already  near  two  thirds  compleated  with  stone 
work  in  a  very  defensible  manner,  &  will  be  finlsh'd  early  in 
the  Summer,  I  having  obtain'd  a  sufficient  sum  at  the  last 
Session  of  the  Genl  Court  for  that  particular  Service,  and 
made  some  Advance  towards  getting  a  Chaplain  settled 
there,  so  that  I  dare  undertake  for  the  finishing  of  the  Works 
at  the  Fort  &  the  thorough  Establishment  of  the  Garrison 
by  Summer,  which  I  hope  will  Induce  their  Lordships  of  the 
Committee  to  overlook  past  neglects  in  this  Matter. 

As  to  the  Nonpayment  of  the  500  Guineas,  I  have  (in  the 
present  recess  of  the  Genl  Court)  ordered  the  Secry  to  search 
the  proceedings  of  the  Court  In  that  Affair,  and  to  make  his 

^  Mass.  Arch.  Col.  Sen  Letters  53,  138.  A  similar  letter  to  the 
Duke  of  Newcastle  is  In  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  74. 

2  On  Feb,  3,  1741/2  Shirley  had  requested  from  Newcastle 
cannon  and  warlike  stores  for  Castle  William  (C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  34), 
and  on  June  19  he  appointed  Spencer  Phips,  John  Jeffries,  Samuel 
Welles,  and  others  to  supervise  the  repairs  at  the  Castle  {ibid.  p.  6^)' 

93 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

report  to  me  thereupon,  which  I  shall  transmit  to  the  Agents, 
that  they  may  give  their  Lordships  the  best  account  they  can 
of  it.  And  if  I  might  be  allowed  to  be  an  Intercessor  with 
your  Lordship  &  the  other  Lords  of  the  Council  for  the  Prov- 
ince in  this  particular,  I  would  observe  in  its  Favour  that 
it  has  been  at  a  very  considerable  Expence  this  last  Year  by 
several  Grants  for  repairing  not  only  Pemmaquid  Fort,  but 
three  other  of  his  Majty's  Forts  in  the  Eastern  part  of  the 
Province  for  its  Defence  against  the  Indians  &  French  of 
Canada,^  as  also  for  erecting  Batteries  in  all  the  Seaport 
Towns,  all  which  as  well  as  the  Fortifications  of  Castle 
William  were  a  few  Months  ago  in  a  very  defenceless  Con- 
dition, &  will  require  large  sums  of  Money  to  compleat  'em. 
I  would  presume  further  to  observe  to  your  Lordship  that 
the  Genl  Court  has  by  their  remarkably  free  grants  for  his 
Majty's  service  in  the  Expedition  agt  the  Spanish  West 
Indies^  considerably  increased  the  Taxes  of  his  Massachusetts 
subjects  within  these  three  years,  which  was  done  with 
great  Zeal  &  cheerfulness  :  I  would  lastly  urge  in  their  fa- 
vour that  the  great  Fishery  carried  on  by  the  Inhabitants  of 
this  Province  only  &  the  Importance  of  the  Harbour  of 
Boston  to  his  Majty's  service,  in  case  a  large  Armament 
should  be  ever  sent  from  Great  Britain  against  any  of  the 
French  settlements  in  North  America,  (as  that  port  is  looked 
on  by  the  French  &  really  is  the  most  convenient  &  advan- 
tageous if  not  the  only  place  of  Rendezvous  in  his  Majty's 
northern  Colonies  for  a  considerable  Number  of  Ships  and 
troops)  would,  in  case  of  a  rupture  with  France,  expose 
it  more  to  a  visit  from  the  enemy,  on  accot  of  it's  impor- 
tance to  the  interests  of  his  Majty's   British  Dominions, 

^  On  Aug.  30,  1742,  Shirley  had  written  Newcastle  of  his  visit  to 
the  eastern  forts  and  on  Sept.  15,  he  wrote  the  Lords  Commissioners 
of  Trade  that  he  had  obtained  money  for  their  completion.  C.  O. 
5,  900,  p.  65,  and  C.  0.5,  883. 

^  Shirley's  proclamation  encouraging  volunteers  to  enlist  in  the 
service  of  the  expedition  against  the  Spanish  West  Indies  was 
dated  Oct.  16,  1741.  A  copy  is  in  C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  22.  On  Oct. 
17  he  wrote  Newcastle  regarding  the  difficulties  attendant  upon  the 
raising  of  recruits  in  the  province  {ibid.  p.  13). 

94 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

than  any  other  of  his  Northern  Colonies,  which  therefore 
requires  that  Harbour  to  be  secured  in  the  best  manner,  and 
may  I  hope  recommend  it  to  his  Majty's  Favour. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO    THE    LORDS    OF 
TRADE  1 

Boston,  N.  Engld,  Jany.   24,   1742. 
My  Lords, 

A  Deficiency  having  lately  happen'd  in  the  Funds  pro- 
vided for  drawing  in  the  Outstanding  Bills  of  Credit,  whereby 
£8000  of  those  commonly  call'd  the  New  Tenour  Bills, 
which  were  left  outstanding  by  Mr  Belcher,  will  remain 
so,  'till  the  year  1746,  I  think  it  my  duty  to  inform  your 
Lordships  of  the  Occasion  and  Circumstances  of  it,  which 
are  as  follows. 

By  several  Acts  pass'd  in  1736,  1737,  and  1738  Diverse 
Emissions  of  Bills  of  Credit  for  the  support  of  the  Govern- 
ment (to  the  Amount  of  £57,966 :  6  :  8)  of  a  Tenour  and 
Form  different  from  that  of  all  former  Bills  of  Credit,  and 
distinguish'd  by  the  name  of  Bills  of  the  New  Tenour  were 
made,  six  shillings  and  eight  pence  of  which  was  to  be  equal 
in  value  to  one  Ounce  of  Silver  Troy  Weight  of  Sterling 
Alloy,  or  Gold  Coin  at  the  rate  of  Four  pounds  eighteen 
Shillings  ^  Ounce  to  the  possessor,  and  to  be  so  accepted 
by  the  Treasurer  in  all  publick  payments,  the  Duties  of 
Impost,  Tunnage  of  Shipping  and  Incomes  of  the  Light- 
house only  excepted,  which  Duties  were  made  payable  in 
Silver  or  Gold  only,  in  order  to  raise  a  Fund  of  those  Species 
for  securing  the  Redemption  of  such  of  the  New  Tenour 
Bills,  as  should  not  be  drawn  back  into  the  Treasury  by 
publick  payments,  but  be  outstanding  in  the  Hands  of  pri- 
vate persons  after  December  1742.  These  Bills,  which 
were  the  only  Bills  of  Credit  in  the  province  redeemable 
with  Silver  and  Gold,  were  at  the  very  time  of  their  Emission 
depreciated  above  33  ^  Cent,  both  in  publick  and  private 

iP.  R.  O.,  CO.  s,  883, 
95 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

payments  by  means  of  some  Mistakes  in  the  before  men- 
tioned Acts  (a  Detail  of  which  would  be  too  long  for  me  to 
give  your  Lordships  in  this  Letter)  insomuch  that  before 
the  end  of  the  year  1739  private  persons  began  to  hoard  'em 
up  for  the  Advantage  of  exchanging  'em  at  the  Treasury, 
after  December  1742,  for  Silver  and  Gold  according  to  their 
Denomination,  which  was  33  and  ^  '^  Cent  more  than 
what  they  pass'd  for  in  their  common  Currency ;  and  con- 
sequently there  could  be  no  just  Expectation  of  their  being 
all  drawn  back  into  the  Treasury  by  publick  payments,  as 
they  were  design'd  to  have  been. 

In  December  1739,  notwithstanding  that  such  was  the 
State  of  these  Bills  as  made  it  most  probable  that  great 
Quantities  of  them  would  be  hoarded  up  and  brought  to 
the  Treasury  to  be  exchang'd  for  Silver  and  Gold,  the  Genl 
Court  passed  an  Order  which  from  that  time  effectually  de- 
stroyed the  before  mentioned  Fund  of  Silver  and  Gold  provided 
for  the  Redemption  of  such  of  these  Bills,  as  should  be  out- 
standing in  the  Hands  of  private  persons  after  December 
1742.  i: 

At  the  Beginning  of  November  Session  last,  when  the 
Period  limited  for  the  Redemption  of  these  Bills  was  within 
seven  weeks  of  its  arrival,  I  reminded  the  Assembly  of  the 
Engagements,  they  were  under  to  the  possessors  of  'em, 
and  press'd  'em  to  make  a  proper  provision  for  answering 
their  Demands ;  and  order'd  the  Treasurer  to  lay  before 
'em  the  State  of  the  Treasury,  by  which  it  appear'd  that 
upwards  of  £42,000  in  Bills  of  the  New  Tenour  was  out- 
standing and  that  there  was  but  £2,900  in  Silver  in  the 
Treasury  to  redeem  'em  with. 

The  Assembly  was  at  first  much  averse  to  my  proposal, 
and  I  could  not  prevail  with  'em  to  do  anything  for  the 
Satisfaction  of  the  possessors  of  the  Bills,  till  the  fifth  week 
of  their  Session,  when  after  repeated  pressing  Messages  to 
'em  upon  that  Head  they  pass'd  a  Vote  that  those  Bills 
should  be  accepted  in  all  publick  payments  at  '^'^  and  ^  "^ 
Cent  more  than  the  value^  at  which  they  had  been  stated  by  the 
beforementioned  Acts ;    and  afterwards  passed  a  second  Vote 

96 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

that  the  Treasurer  should  exchange  such  of  'em  as  should  he 
brought  to  the  Treasury  for  that  purpose,  for  Bills  of  the  last 
Emission  made  since  my  coming  to  the  Administration  of  the 
Government,  which  tho  of  no  more  than  equal  Denomination 
pass'd  for  33  and  ^  ^  Cent  more  in  publick  and  private 
payments  than  those  Bills  did. 

This  Satisfaction  to  the  Possessors  of  the  Bills  falls  indeed 
short  of  the  value  of  the  Silver  and  Gold,  they  were  entitled 
to  receive ;  But  it  is  the  best  I  could  procure  for  'em,  and  what 
was  obtain'd  with  much  Difficulty,  and  seems  to  be  very 
well  accepted  by  the  possessors  :  And  indeed  the  Province 
was  unable  to  purchase  a  sufficient  Quantity  of  Silver  and 
Gold  to  answer  the  Demands  of  the  possessors  by  the  time 
limited  for  their  payment ;  Wherefore  I  thought  myself 
very  successful  in  prevailing  so  far,  as  I  have  done,  and  by 
that  means  procuring  the  above  mention'd  Justice  for  the 
possessors  of  the  Bills,  saving  the  Publick  Faith  of  the  Prov- 
ince from  being  destroy'd,  and  the  Credit  of  their  Bills 
from  being  irretrievably  lost,  and  preventing  your  Lord- 
ships from  being  troubled  with  loud  Complaints  to  his 
Majesty  against  the  province. 

And  as  this  Method  of  doing  justice  to  the  possessors  of 
the  Bills  was  the  only  practicable  one,  so  it  is  the  most  con- 
sistent with  his  Majy's  Instruction  for  limiting  the  Quan- 
tity of  Bills  of  Credit  current  at  the  same  time  within  the 
province,  as  it  does  not  occasion  the  least  Increase  of  the 
Bills  now  current. 

Your  Lordships  will  by  this  time  perceive  that  the  raising 
of  the  value  of  the  above  mentioned  Bills  33  and  ^  ^  Cent 
in  all  publick  payments  must  necessarily  occasion  a  De- 
ficiency in  the  Funds  of  Taxes  provided  for  drawing  them 
into  the  Treasury  by  the  End  of  1743  :  and  it  will  leave 
£8000  of  'em  outstanding  beyond  that  time.  For  draw- 
ing in  these  by  the  End  of  the  year  1746  the  General  Court 
has  pass'd  a  Tax  Act,  which  I  have  consented  to,  being  un- 
able to  prevail  with  'em  to  lay  that  Sum  upon  the  Inter- 
mediate years  (which  must  be  pretty  much  burthen'd  with- 
out it;)  and  being  under  this  Dilemma  either  to  acquiesce 
VOL.  I  —  H  97 


COftHESf^ONDENCE  OE  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

In  so  distant  a  period  or  to  suffer  the  possessors  of  the  Bills 
to  go  without   any   Satisfaction,    and   the   Province   to   be 
overwhelmed  with  the  111  Consequences  of  such  Injustice. 
I  hope  to  find  at  last  some  End  of  the  perplexed  State  of 
the  old  Bills  of    Credit,   and  that    the  Method    taken  for 
procuring  Satisfaction  to  the  possessors  of  the  abovemen- 
tlon'd  Bills  and  extricating  the  Province  out  of  its  before- 
mentlon'd  Difficulties  will  "not  be  disapproved. 
I  am  wth  the  highest  Respect 
My  Lords, 

Your  most  Obedient  and 
most  Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Rt  Honble  Lds  Commlssrs  of  Trade  &ca. 

Endorsed: 

Massachusets 

Letter  from  Mr  Shirley,  Govr.  of  the  Massachusets-Bay, 
to  the  Board,  dated  at  Boston  the  24th  of  Janry  174/^,  giv- 
ing an  acct  of  a  deficiency  of  £8000  In  the  funds  for  drawing 
in  the  bills  commonly  called  the  New  Tenour  Bills,  with  the 
occasion  &  Circumstances  thereof,  &  also  what  he  has  done 
to  remedy  the  same. 

Reed  March   14th   174^ 

Read  April  12th  1743. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   LORDS  OF 
TRADE 1 

Boston,  N.  Engld,  Janry.  30,  1742. 
My  Lords, 

A.  By  the  last  Ship  I  acquainted  your  Lordships  that  I 
was  in  hopes  of  finishing  the  late  Land  Bank  Scheme  by  caus- 
ing the  Attorney  General  to  prosecute  all  such  of  the  part- 
ners, as  should  refuse  to  redeem  their  just  Quota  of  the  Bills, 
in  order  to  subject  'em  to  the  penalties  of  the  late  Act  of 

ip.  R.  O.,  0.0.5,883. 
98 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Parliament  made  for  suppressing  that  Scheme ;  And  Mr 
Attorney  has  filed  one  Information  accordingly,  and  is 
preparing  others  ;  And  out  of  £49,000  of  those  Bills,  which 
have  been  issued  out,  there  is  not  much  more  than  £7000 
outstanding ;  and  of  upwards  of  800  partners  675  have  paid 
in  their  Quotas  :  But  I  am  Inform'd  that  some  part  of  the 
Bills  which  are  outstanding  was  issued  out  by  the  late 
Company  In  Trade,  and  that  they  have  some  Debts  owing 
to  them,  and  that  considerable  charges  have  arisen  upon  their 
late  Transactions  whilst  the  Company  subsisted,  the  get- 
ting in  and  adjusting  and  proportioning  of  which,  as  all 
their  mutual  Covenants  and  Agreements  among  themselves, 
and  Transactions  with  others  as  a  Company  are  declared 
by  the  Act  of  Parliament  to  be  null  and  void  from  the  be- 
ginning, can't  be  effected  by  themselves ;  Also  that  some 
of  the  Possessors  of  the  outstanding  Bills  sue  great  Num- 
bers of  the  partners  with  a  View  only  of  extorting  Money 
from  the  Defendants  in  order  to  let  the  Actions  drop,  and 
by  that  means  lay  'em  under  Contributions,  those  who 
have  comply'd  with  the  Act  of  Parliament  as  well  as  those 
who  have  not,  by  which  unwarrantable  Method  and  other 
practices,  these  Bills  may  be  kept  circulating  without 
End,  unless  something  further  is  done  to  prevent  It.  For 
remedying  which  Mischiefs,  drawing  In  all  the  Bills,  and 
effectually  finishing  the  whole  Scheme,  and  preventing  any 
further  III  consequences  of  It  the  Inclos'd  Bill  was  pass'd  the 
last  Session  by  the  Assembly  and  Council ;  And  tho  I  am  of 
opinion  that  the  Scheme  can't  well  be  finished  otherwise  than 
by  Commissioners  vested  with  proper  powers  for  that  pur- 
pose, yet  as  this  Bill  is  of  an  unusual  and  extraordinary 
Nature ;  and  might.  If  I  had  given  my  Consent  to  it,  have 
obtaln'd  it's  whole  effect  before  his  Majesty  has  an  oppor- 
tunity of  disallowing  it,  If  it  should  be  disapproved  of; 
and  It  seems  In  some  measure  to  interfere  with  the  Remedy 
given  to  the  possesors  of  the  Bills  by  the  Act  of  Parliament, 
tho  it  does  not  take  it  away  and  is  intended  partly  for  their 
Benefit;  I  did  not  think  It  consistent  with  my  duty  to  act 
upon  it  'till  I  could  know  his  Majy's  Royal  pleasure  concern- 

99 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ing  it;  for  which  purpose  I  now  transmit  it  to  your  Lord- 
ships in  order  to  be  laid  before  his  Majesty  :  And  if  your 
Lordships  should  be  of  opinion  that  this  Act  is  not  of  too 
extraordinary  a  Nature  to  take  place  in  the  Plantations, 
and  of  no  dangerous  Consequence  in  any  other  Respects, 
I  believe  it  might  be  Beneficial  in  its  Consequences  in  this 
particular  Case.  The  Assembly  has  voted  an  Allowance 
for  a  Chaplain  at  Pemmaquid  Fort,  and  I  have  appointed 
a  Chaplain  there ;  and  as  the  Rebuilding  of  the  Fort  will 
be  linish'd  by  next  Summer,  I  shall  endeavour  to  get  the 
Garrison  properly  establish'd  according  to  the  Intent  of  his 
Majesty's  Instruction.  The  Assembly  has  also  pass'd  an  Act 
for  an  Allowance  of  pay  to  the  Inhabitants  of  Dorchester 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Castle  William,  whom  I  shall  en- 
list into  the  Service  of  that  Fortress  and  form  into  two 
Companies  of  about  60  men  each  under  proper  officers  to 
be  exerciz'd  and  disciplin'd  in  the  use  of  the  Great  Artillery, 
and  who  are  bound  by  the  Act  to  be  ready  upon  any  Alarm 
for  the  Defence  of  the  Castle  against  an  Enemy.  As  this 
Province  never  had  before  any  Matrosses  or  persons  capable 
of  making  a  proper  use  of  the  Great  Guns  in  case  of  an  In- 
vasion by  an  Enemy,  I  am  in  hopes  that  th  s  Establish- 
ment may  be  for  his  Majy's  Service  and  the  Security  of 
the  Province  :  And  I  flatter  myself  if  his  Majesty  shall  be 
pleas'd  to  extend  his  Royal  Bounty  to  it  in  furnishing  the 
great  Guns,  for  which  the  General  Court  has  petition'd, 
for  the  use  of  the  New  Works  at  the  Castle,  (towards  finish- 
ing which  works  I  have  obtain'd  another  Grant  of  Money 
from  the  Assembly  this  last  Session)  that  the  Fortifications  of 
this  Harbour  may  be  such  as  will  be  suitable  to  his  Majy's 
Capital  province  in  North  America. 

B.  The  Agents  for  the  province  having  inform'd  me  that 
some  of  the  Acts  pass'd  in  Mr  Belcher's  time  had  not  been 
duely  presented  to  your  Lordships  for  his  Majy's  Allowance 
or  Disallowance,  I  have  caus'd  the  Secretary  to  send  new 
Exemplifications  of  those  Acts  by  this  Ship,  and  find  upon 
Enquiry  that  they  had  certainly  been  sent  before,  so  that 
it  must  be  an  Omission  by  the  late  Mr  Agent  Wilks  occa- 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

sion'd  very  likely  thro  his  Indisposition  To  which  I  have 
to  add  that  among  the  other  Acts  nov/  sent  to  be  present'd 
to  your  Lordships  there  is  a  private  one  pass'd  for  the  Sale 
of  some  wild  lands  of  an  inconsiderable  value  belonging  to 
two  Minors,  upon  which  I  would  observe  to  your  Lordships 
that  I  suddenly  gave  my  Consent  to  this  Act  which  I  was 
press'd  to  do  upon  my  first  perusal  of  it,  when  I  was  in  the 
Chair ;  and  as  it  was  for  providing  for  the  Education  of  the 
two  Minors,  just  enter'd  in  College  and  the  lands  were  but 
of  small  value,  I  did  not  give  the  Matter  so  thorough  a  Con- 
sideration as  I  have  done  since,  upon  which  I  much  doubt 
whether  a  subordinate  Government  has  power  to  make  an 
Act  of  so  extraordinary  a  nature ;  &  therefore  thought  it 
was  proper  to  point  out  to  your  Lordships  my  own  Doubts 
upon  it,  tho  this  particular  Case  is  but  of  a  trifling  value. 
I  am  wth  the  highest  Respect 
My  Lords, 

Your  most  Humble,   and 
most  Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Rt  Honble  Lords  Commissrs  of  Trade  &ca. 

Endorsed: 

Massachusets 
Letter  from  Mr  Shirley,  Govr  of  the  Massachusets  Bay, 
to  the  Board,  dated  at  Boston  the  30th  Janry  174^ 
Reed  March  14th  174^ 
Read  Apl  1 2th  1743 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   LORDS   OF 
TRADE 1 

Boston,  March  19th,  1742. 
My  Lords, 

In  a  former  letter  to  your  Lordships  I  observ'd  upon  the 
provision  made  for  preventing  Creditors  from  suffering  in 

^  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  883.     See  letters  of  Jan.  24  and  30  preceding. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

their  Estates  upon  the  depreciating  of  the  Bills  of  Credit, 
by  the  late  Province  Law  entitled  an  Act  to  ascertain  the 
Value  of  Money  and  of  the  Bills  of  publick  Credit  of  this 
Province  ^ca  which  Act  I  understand  has  been  laid  before 
your  Lordships  for  his  Majy's  Royal  Approbation. 

By  this  Law  it  is  enacted  that  the  Genl.  Assembly  shall 
once  in  every  six  months  determine  the  Rates  that  the  said 
Bills  then  commonly  pass  at  in  proportion  to  Silver  and 
Bills  of  Exchange  payable  in  London,  and  that  in  want 
thereof  it  shall  be  determin'd  by  the  Committee  of  his  Majy's 
Council  appointed  by  the  Act  for  that  purpose,  and,  in  case 
of  their  failure,  that  then  the  Justices  of  the  Superior  Court 
of  Judicature  in  their  several  Terms  in  the  County  of  Suf- 
folk annually  shall  appoint  five  able  and  sufficient  men  upon 
their  Oaths  to  do  it ;  which  Valuations  of  the  Bills  are  from 
time  to  time  to  be  certify'd  into  the  Secretary's  Office,  and 
thence  issued  out  to  the  Justices  of  his  Majy's  Courts  in 
every  County  within  the  Province,  who  are  required  to 
proceed  by  them  as  their  Rule  in  making  up  Judgments  for 
all  Debts  and  Dues  to  be  contracted  after  the  last  Day  of 
March  1742,  (Specialties  and  express  Contracts  excepted,) 
and  in  case  it  shall  appear  by  those  Valuations  that  the  Bills 
are  depreciated  since  the  Debt  was  contracted  then  the 
Judges  are  bound  to  make  up  Judgment  for  the  true  value 
of  the  Debt  in  Silver,  or  in  want  thereof  for  the  nominal 
value  of  the  Debt  in  Province  Bills  with  an  Addition  of  so 
much  more  in  those  Bills  as  will  make  the  Creditor  amends 
for  the  depreciating  of  'em  since  the  time  of  the  Debts  being 
contracted.  So  that  to  carry  this  Law  into  Execution  your 
Lordships  perceive  it  became  necessary  either  for  the  General 
Court,  or  the  Committee  of  his  Majty's  Council,  or  the 
Justices  of  the  Superior  Court  of  Judicature  to  ascertain 
the  Value  of  the  Bills  of  Credit,  from  time  to  time,  in  order 
to  furnish  the  several  Courts  of  Judicature  with  a  Rule  to 
proceed  by  in  making  up  their  Judgments  for  the  true  value 
of  the  Debt,  without  which  Rule  the  Ends  proposed  by  the 
Act  would  be  frustrated,  and  the  Law  be  of  no  effect. 

As  I  at  first  met  with  great  Diflliculty  in  getting  the  As- 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

sembly  to  pass  this  Act,  so  I  have  found  no  less  in  getting 
it  carried  into  Execution  ;  For  the  House  of  Representatives 
having  obtain'd  the  Emission  of  £30,000  in  Bills  of  Credit 
for  the  Supply  of  the  Treasury  in  1741,  which  was  their 
sole  Inducement  for  passing  the  abovemention'd  Act  (I 
having  made  their  passing  it  the  Terms  of  my  consenting 
to  that  Emission)  soon  grew  dis-inclined  to  its  being  put  in 
Execution,  as  it  was  a  new  thing  in  the  Province  and  quite 
unpopular,  and  so  utterly  neglected  to  determine  the  Rates 
of  the  Bills  pursuant  to  the  directions  of  the  Act,  and  the 
Committee  of  his  Majy's  Council  being  as  listless  in  the 
Affair  for  the  same  Reason  have  also  hitherto  neglected  to 
do  it ;  and  the  Judges  of  the  Superior  Court  of  Judicature, 
who  are  dependent  upon  the  General  Court  for  their  Salaries, 
which  are  voted  'em  annually  and  occasion  their  being  too 
much  byass'd  by  Popularity,  likewise  omitted  doing  it 
till  this  present  Term,  when  I  sent  'em  a  Letter  reminding 
'em  of  their  Duty  in  this  matter,  and  peremptorily  insist- 
ing upon  their  constantly  doing  it  ex  officio  for  the  future. 
Thus  I  have  at  last  influenc'd  'em  to  carry  this  Law  into 
Execution  ;  and  Creditors  will  now  be  secure  by  virtue  of  it, 
of  recovering  from  their  Debtors  within  this  Province  the 
true  value  of  their  Debts  contracted  since  the  first  Day  of 
March  1742,  and  of  all  future  Debts  after  any  length  of 
time,  which  will  not  barr  'em  of  an  Action  for  that  purpose, 
let  the  Bills  of  Credit  of  this  Province  be  depreciated  never  so 
much  between  the  time  of  the  Debts  being  contracted  and 
the  time  of  their  payment;  Whereas  before  the  passing  of 
this  Act,  upon  every  such  Depreciating  of  the  Bills,  the 
Merchants  trading  to  this  Province  and  every  Creditor 
within  it  (who  had  not  guarded  against  such  Loss  by  ex- 
press Contracts)  lost  part  of  the  Value  of  their  Debts ;  and 
some  have  lost  even  the  full  Value  of  their  principal  Money 
upon  Debts  of  a  long  standing :  But  I  hope  the  due  Execu- 
tion of  this  Act  will  effectually  prevent  these  Mischiefs  for 
the  future;  and  it  seems  to  be  the  only  Remedy  of  'em, 
which  the  present  Circumstances  of  the  Province  will  bear; 
For  since  the  Depreciating  of  the  Bills  of  Credit  must  re- 

103 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

main  Incurable,  whilst  the  Neighbouring  Colonies  of  Rhode 
Island  and  Connecticutt  are  permitted  to  pour  into  this 
Province  such  Floods  of  their  Bills  of  Credit,  as  they  at 
present  do ;  all  that  can  be  done  in  such  case  is  to  hinder  the 
Depreciating  of  the  Bills  from  producing  those  Mischievous 
Effects,  which  they  used  to  do  before. 

His  Majesty's  Instruction  indeed  limiting  the  Quantity 
of  the  Bills  of  Credit  emitted  in  this  Province,  so  as  that 
not  above  £30,000  of  'em  shall  be  current  at  the  same  time, 
was  well  calculated  to  prevent  them  from  being  depre- 
ciated ;  But  when  I  inform  your  Lordships,  that  there  Is  now 
a  larger  Sum  in  Bills  of  publick  Credit  of  the  Colonies  of 
Connecticutt  and  Rhode  Island  (neither  of  which  Colonies 
are  under  the  same  Restraint)  current  within  this  Province, 
as  there  are  of  the  Province  Bills,  you  will  soon  perceive 
how  Ineffectual  the  Royal  Instruction  is  for  obtaining  the 
End  proposed  by  it.  And  I  may  assure  your  Lordships 
from  certain  Experience,  that  nothing  but  a  Restraint  upon 
the  Colony  of  Rhode  Island  limiting  their  Emissions  of 
Bills  of  publick  Credit,  of  equal  force  at  least  with  that  which 
his  Majesty  has  lay'd  upon  this  Province,  will  prevent  the 
same  Quantity  of  Rhode  Island  Bills  from  being  current  In 
the  Province  as  now  passes  there ;  For  Bills  of  publick 
Credit  being  the  only  Medium  of  Exchange  In  this  Province, 
and  so  become  necessary  to  the  people  for  circulating  the  great 
Variety  of  Trade  which  Is  carried  on  within  it.  Paper  Cur- 
rency will  pass  among  'em  almost  In  any  shape. 

To  demonstrate  to  your  Lordships  how  Insensible  they  are 
grown  of  the  Difference  between  the  Real  and  the  Nominal 
Value  of  publick  Bills  I  shall  mention  one  Instance  of  it, 
which  is,  that  about  eighteen  months  ago  the  Rhode  Is- 
land Bills  emitted  in  1740  of  an  equal  Denomination  with 
the  first  New  Tenour  Bills  of  this  Province,  currently  pass'd 
among  the  people  at  25  "^  Cent  more  than  those  Province 
Bills  did,  tho  the  Province  Bills  were  redeemable  with  Sil- 
ver or  Gold  In  sixteen  months  time,  and  the  Rhode  Island 
Bills  were  not  redeemable  till  about  sixteen  years  hence ; 
so  that  If  they  had  been  also  redeemable  with  Silver  and 

104 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Gold  (which  is  not  the  case)  yet  they  were  by  the  Rules  of 
common  Discount  above  40  '^  Cent  worse  than  the  Prov- 
ince Bills ;  and  this  was  owing  to  nothing  but  the  Impo- 
sition of  the  Rhode  Island  Government,  and  the  blind  fond- 
ness of  the  people  for  paper  Money,  both  which  still  continue 
in  an  extravagant  degree  and  will  do  so  till  the  Parliament 
of  Great  Britain  shall  make  a  general  Regulation  of  the- 
Bills  of  publick  Credit,  at  least  in  the  four  Governments 
of  New  England  ;  For  I  find  all  Attempts  to  procure  an  Act 
of  Assembly  for  hindring  the  Bills  of  Credit  emitted  by 
other  Colonies  from  passing  in  this  Province  will  be  vain 
from  the  Fate  of  a  Bill  which  was  last  Session  of  the  As- 
sembly projected  for  that  purpose  and  first  read  in  Council, 
where  I  could  scarcely  prevail  to  get  it  committed ;  But  in 
the  House  of  Representatives  it  was  unanimously  negatived 
saving  one  Vote  only ;  And  could  I  have  prevail'd  to  have 
got  it  pass'd  into  a  Law,  I  scarcely  think  it  could  be  carried 
into  Execution ;  For  the  Trade  of  this  Province  is  so  link'd 
with  the  Colonies  of  Rhode  Island  and  Connecticut  that  it  is 
scarcely  possible  to  keep  their  Bills  from  having  a  Currency 
here,  especially  as  the  Quantity  of  Bills  of  Credit  allow'd  by 
his  Majesty  to  be  emitted  in  the  Province  is  not  near  suffi- 
cient to  serve  'em  as  a  Medium  of  their  Trade, 

As  it  seems  probable  by  our  Advices  from  England  that 
a  Bill  may  be  soon  brought  into  Parliament  for  a  general 
Regulation  of  the  Paper  Currency  in  the  Plantations,  I 
thought  it  might  not  be  improper  to  lay  before  your  Lord- 
ships, who,  I  suppose,  will  be  chiefly  consulted  in  this  Affair, 
an  Account  of  the  State  of  the  Paper  Currency  in  the  four 
Governments  of  New  England ;  and  this  led  me  into  the 
above  mention'd  particular  Detail  of  it,  and  also  into  the 
inclosed  Reasons  ^  against  an  immediate  total  Suppression  of 
the  Bills  of  Credit.  I  am  wth  the  Highest  Respect 
My  Lords, 

Your  most  Obedient,  and 

most  Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
^  These  reasons  are  given  in  full  on  p.  106  following. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

P.  S.  The  Outstanding  Bills  of  Credit  of  the  Colony  of  Rhode 
Island  may  be  computed  at  about  £420,000  Old  Tenour, 
of  wch  about  £350,000  being  of  the  Value  of  about  £62,000 
Sterling  is  circulating  within  the  Province  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Bay  —  And  the  Outstanding  Bills  of  the  Colony 
of  Connecticutt  may  be  computed  at  abt  £100,000  old  Tenour 
of  wch  about  £50,000  being  of  the  Value  of  abt  £8,300  Sterl 
is  circulating  within  the  said  province. 
Rt  Honble  Lds  Commissrs  of  Trade  &ca 

Endorsed:  -Mt         y       ^ 

Massachusets. 

Letter  from  Mr  Shirley,  Govr  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  to 
the  Board,  dated  at  Boston  the  19th  of  March  1742/3,  relating 
to  his  putting  in  Execution  an  Act  entitled  An  Act  to  ascertain 
the  value  of  Money  i^tc.  together  with  his  observns  on  the  Bills 
of  Credit  of  Rhode  Island,  Connecticut,  &c. 

Reed  June  21st 

Read  —  22 


1743 


Reasons  against  an  immediate  Total   Suppression  of 
Paper  Bills  of  publick  Credit  in  New  England 

The  Ballance  of  Trade  between  the  province  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Bay  (which  is  the  Center  of  the  New  England 
Trade)  and  Great  Britain  has  for  these  several  last  years 
been  so  much  in  favour  of  the  latter  that  it  has  continually 
drain'd  the  province  of  all  it's  Silver  and  Gold  by  Remittances 
made  to  Great  Britain  for  discharging  the  Debts  due  to 
the  Merchants  and  Traders  there. 

This  has  occasion'd  the  Great  and  General  Court  of  that 
Province  to  strike  Bills  of  publick  Credit  from  time  to  time 
to  supply  the  want  of  Silver  and  Gold  for  supporting  the 
Charges  of  his  Majesty's  Government;  and  those  Bills 
together  with  the  Bills  of  publick  Credit  emitted  by  the 
Colonies  of  Rhode  Island,  Connecticutt  and  a  few  Bills  of 
the  Province  of  New  Hampshire  (all  which  are  as  current  in 
the  province  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  as  the  Bills  of  that 
Government  itself)  have  also  for  several  years  last  past  been 

106 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  sole  Medium  of  Trade  within  the  Province  and  the  three 
other  Governments  of  New  England. 

Should  therefore  the  Use  of  these  Bills,  which  as  has  been 
observ'd  are  at  present  the  only  Means  of  supplying  the 
Treasury  for  the  Support  of  his  Majy's  Government,  and 
also  the  sole  medium  of  Trade  within  the  Province  be 
immediately  and  at  once  suppress'd  (as  the  Opinion  of  some 
is  that  they  should)  such  a  sudden  Alteration  would  very 
much  distress  his  Majy's  Government  within  the  Province, 
and  at  first  almost  put  it  to  a  stand  ;  and  cause  a  Stagnation 
and  great  Confusion  in  the  Trade  and  Business  of  the 
province ;  And  would  moreover  for  two  or  three  years  at 
least,  necessarily  draw  all  the  Silver  and  Gold,  which  is 
now  annually  remitted  from  the  province  to  Great  Britain  to 
pay  it's  Ballance  due  to  the  British  Merchants,  out  of  that 
Trade  (as  such  Silver  and  Gold  must  upon  a  total  Suppression 
of  Bills  of  publick  Credit  be  employ'd  in  payment  of  Taxes 
for  the  Support  of  the  Government  &  circulating  Trade  and 
Business  within  the  province)  and  thereby  lessen  the  Vent 
of  British  Woollen  and  other  British  Commodities  and 
Manufactures  there  for  some  time,  and  perhaps  put  the 
Inhabitants  upon  attempting  to  supply  themselves  with 
Manufactures  of  their  own  in  lieu  of  'em,  or  otherwise  divert 
part  of  it's  present  Trade  to  Great  Britain  into  some  other 
Channell  so  as  to  make  it  difficult  to  be  regain'd. 

It  would  also  for  some  years  cramp  the  New  England 
Trade  in  all  it's  other  Branches,  check  the  Growth  of  the 
Settlements  of  the  Lands,  and  lessen  the  Whale  and  Cod 
fishery  of  the  province  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   LORDS  OF 
TRADE 1 

My  Lords,  ^°^^°"'  ^-  ^"8^^'  ^°^^-  7'  ^743- 

I  have  receiv'd  your  Letters  of  the  22d  of  June  and  6th 
of  July,  in  the  latter  of  which  you  are  pleas'd  to  express  your 

ip.  R.  O.,  CO.  5,  884,  231. 
107 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Approbation  of  my  Refusal  to  assent  to  the  late  Bill  for  the 
more  speedy  finishing  of  the  Land  Bank  or  Manufactory 
Scheme  on  account  of  the  extraordinary  Powers  thereby 
vested  in  the  Commissioners  appointed  for  carrying  it  into 
Execution,  and  it's  interfering  in  some  measure  with  the  Act 
of  Parliament  pass'd  in  England  for  the  Relief  of  the  Credi- 
tors, and  to  say,  you  could  wish  the  Assembly  could  frame 
a  Bill  of  an  Equitable  nature,  that  might  stand  clear  of  the 
Objections  against  the  last,  and  be  Effectual  for  the  purposes 
design'd  thereby. 

I  now  transmit  to  your  Lordships  an  Act  of  an  Equitable 
nature,  which,  I  believe,  will  be  Effectual  for  the  purposes 
design'd  by  the  late  Bill,  (if  it  shall  have  his  Majy's  Royal 
Approbation)  and  which  is  so  framed  as  that  I  hope  it 
may  appear  to  your  Lordships,  as  it  does  to  me,  to  stand 
clear  of  all  Objections  against  that  Bill. 

The  extraordinary  powers  given  by  the  late  Bill  to  the 
Commissioners  were  a  power  by  their  Warrant  to  the  Sheriff 
to  break  open  Doors,  Chests  &ca  in  order  to  seize  the  Effects, 
Books  and  papers  of  the  late  Directors ;  an  absolute  power 
to  assess  any  Sum  upon  any  of  the  Delinquent  Directors 
or  Partners,  without  liberty  of  appealing  from  their  De- 
termination in  case  of  any  Grievance,  as  also  to  apportion 
the  general  Loss  among  'em  without  any  Appeal ;  likewise 
to  sell  that  part  of  any  Delinquent  Director's  or  Partner's 
Estate,  which  had  been  before  mortgag'd  to  the  Company  at 
their  Discretion  for  payment  of  the  Sums  assess'd  upon 
'em ;  and  those  Delinquent  Partners  and  Directors  were 
made  Incapable  of  Alienating  such  part  of  their  Estates  from 
and  after  the  Publication  of  the  Act  without  special  Leave 
from  the  Governour  and  Council,  and  all  the  Acts  of  the 
Commissioners  in  general  were  to  be  final,  except  that  they 
were  to  be  accountable  to  the  General  Court  for  their  Re- 
ceipts and  Payments.  Whereas  this  Act  has  no  other  Effect 
for  binding  and  subjecting  the  Estates  of  the  Delinquent 
Directors  and  Partners  from  and  after  the  publication  of 
it  to  the  payment  of  such  Sums,  as  shall  be  assess'd  upon 
'em  by  the  Commissioners  with  the  Allowance  of  the  General 

io8 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Court,  than  the  actual  Service  of  an  ordinary  Writ  of  Attach- 
ment at  the  Suit  of  any  Creditor  would  have  upon  their 
Estates  for  subjecting  'em  to  the  payment  of  any  common 
Debt,  according  to  the  common  course  of  the  Law  and 
Usage  within  the  province :  The  Commissioners  have  no 
power  to  break  open  locks  ;  no  absolute  power  to  Assess  any 
Sums  of  Money  upon  any  partner  or  Director,  but  they 
are  obllg'd  to  make  a  Report  of  their  Assessments  and  all 
their  other  Acts  to  the  General  Court,  which  must  give  a  Sanc- 
tion to  'em  before  they  are  binding,  and  may  disallow  'em : 
And  such  partners  or  Directors,  who  think  themselves  aggriev'd 
by  any  of  their  Determinations,  may  appeal  from  'em  to 
the  Genl  Court :  and  if  they  choose  to  have  any  material 
Facts  not  agreed  between  them  and  the  Commissioners 
try'd  in  a  Court  of  Law  upon  an  Issue  to  be  directed  by  the 
Genl  Court,  such  Issue  Is  to  be  directed  for  the  Trial  of 
'em  by  a  Jury  In  his  Majy's  Superior  Court  of  Judicature. 
Thus  no  party  can  lose  the  Benefit  of  a  Trial  at  Law  if 
he  desires  it;  And  the  Commissioners  have  no  power 
to  make  Sale  of  that  part  of  any  Delinquent  partner's  or 
Director's  Estate,  which  was  before  mortgag'd  to  the  Com- 
pany, as  was  before  given  'em  by  the  late  Bill,  but  only  to 
mortgage  It ;  And  it  is  expressly  provided  by  the  Act  that, 
notwithstanding  any  thing  contain'd  In  It  or  done  In  pur- 
suance of  it,  the  persons  and  Estates  of  the  partners  and 
Directors  shall  be  liable  to  the  same  Demands  and  Attach- 
ments of  the  possessors  of  the  Bills,  as  they  were  before  the 
making  of  the  Act ;  So  that  this  Act  of  the  Genl  Court  does 
not  In  the  least  Interfere  with  the  Act  of  Parliament,  by 
taking  away  the  Remedy,  which  that  gave  the  possessors 
of  the  Bills  against  the  partners  or  Directors,  and  substitut- 
ing another  in  lieu  of  it,  unless  the  possessors  choose  to 
bring  in  their  Bills  to  the  Commissioners  to  be  redeem'd 
by  them,  which  Is  In  their  favour;  nor  does  It  In  the  least 
clash  with  the  Act  of  Parliament  by  declaring  or  supposing 
any  of  the  Agreements  or  Covenants  between  the  Partners 
and  Directors  In  forming  and  executing  their  late  Scheme 
to  be  good  in  Law,  which  the  Act  of  Parliament  declares 

109 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

to  be  Illegal  and  Void ;  but  Is  manifestly  calculated  to  carry 
the  Act  of  Parliament  into  Execution  according  to  it's 
full  Intent,  which  I  suppose  was  to  punish  and  Burthen  the 
whole  Company,  and  not  that  such  of  'em,  who  should 
pay  a  due  Obedience  to  the  Act,  should  be  ruin'd  in  their 
Estates  and  Families,  and  those,  who  were  Dishonest  and 
Refractory,  should  avoid  their  part  of  the  Loss  and  Burthen 
by  their  Obstinacy,  which  among  so  great  a  number  as 
eight  hundred,  of  which  the  Company  consisted,  must  have 
been  the  Fate  of  some.  If  this  Act  had  not  been  made ;  be- 
sides their  being  subjected  to  the  Oppression  of  such  persons 
as  buying  up  the  Bills  of  some  Ignorant  Possessors  at  a  great 
Discount  either  out  of  Avarice  or  pique  against  particular 
persons,  harrass  'em  with  Demands  in  order  to  exact  sums 
of  money  from  'em  to  let  their  Suits  drop,  and  contribute 
to  keep  such  of  the  Bills  as  are  now  outstanding  In  a  Cir- 
culation. And  it  seems  to  me  upon  the  whole  that  this 
Act  of  the  Genl  Court  is  so  well  guarded,  and  that  It  Is 
framed  In  such  manner,  as  that.  If  any  Act  Effectual  to  answer 
the  Ends  deslgn'd  by  this  and  consistent  with  the  Act  of 
Parliament  can  be  devis'd,  this  is  such  a  one. 

And  your  Lordships  perceive  that  this  Act  provides  that, 
in  case  of  the  Death  or  Refusal  of  any  of  the  Commissioners, 
such  Vacancy  Is  not  to  be  fill'd  up  by  the  Governour  and 
Council,  as  was  provided  by  the  former  Bill,  and  which 
I  understand  was  excepted  to  by  your  Lordships,  but  is  to 
be  supply'd  by  the  General  Court. 

And  I  would  particularly  observe  to  your  Lordships  that 
I  have  taken  care  that  the  Commissioners  shall  only  proceed 
to  Audit  the  Accounts  of  the  Company  and  make  Report 
of  their  proceedings  to  the  Genl  Court,  (at  their  next  May 
Sessions)  which  must  give  Sanction  to  all  that  they  do,  so 
that  I  have  It  absolutely  in  my  power  to  hinder  the  Act 
from  being  carried  Into  Execution,  'till  I  know  his  Majy's 
pleasure  upon  It,  and  I  shall  accordingly  suspend  the  Execu- 
tion of  it  till  then;  And  I  hope  that  the  Steps,  which  the 
Commissioners  will  take  in  the  mean  time  In  Auditing  and 
settling  the  Affairs  of  the  Company  and  In  apportioning  the 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Loss,  which  will  arise  from  the  whole  Scheme,  in  order 
to  be  lay'd  before  the  General  Court,  may  tend  to  check 
several  Mischievous  Practices,  one  of  which  is  an  Endeavour 
to  influence  some  Members  of  the  Assembly,  who  have  been 
lately  Active  in  his  Majy's  Service,  by  intimidating  'em 
with  Demands  of  large  Sums  of  Manufactory  Bills,  in  order 
to  make  'em  oppose  the  Measures  of  the  Government  for 
the  sake  of  getting  rid  of  such  Demands,  for  which  special 
purpose  some  Sums  of  those  Bills  have  been  purchas'd  of 
the  possessors  ;  which  is  a  vile  abuse  of  the  Act  of  Parliament. 

As  it  appears  to  me  that  the  Execution  of  this  Act  would 
be  for  the  Service  of  his  Majy's  Government  here,  as  well  as 
very  much  for  that  of  the  Country,  and  correct  several 
Abuses  of  the  Act  of  Parliament,  I  hope  your  Lordships 
will  not  find  any  thing  so  Exceptionable  in  it  as  to  hinder  his 
Majy's  Approbation  of  it ;  And  if  your  Lordships  would  be 
pleased  to  signify  to  me  his  Majy's  pleasure  upon  it,  as  early 
as  may  be  consistent  with  your  Conveniency,  so  that  I  may 
know  how  to  act  upon  it  by  the  Beginning  of  next  June,  I 
should  esteem  it  a  singular  Mark  of  your  Goodness  and 
Favour  to  me. 

I  shall  observe  your  Commands  relating  to  the  Lands 
between  Nova  Scotia  and  the  River  of  Sagadehock,  and  an 
Account  of  the  State  of  the  Paper  Currency,  and  all  other 
Matters  in  your  last  Letter  not  answer'd  here,  and  am  with 
the  highest  Respect 

My  Lords 

Your  Obedient  &  most 
Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Rt  Honble  Lords  Commissrs  of  Trade  &ca 

Endorsed: 

Massachusets 

Letter  from  Mr.  Shirley,  Govr  of  the  Massachusets  Bay  to 
the  Board,  dated  the  7th  of  Novbr  1743,  transmitting  An  Act 
for  the  more  speedy  finishing  the  Land  Bank  or  Manufactory 
Scheme,  passed  the  iith  of  that  Month,  with  his  Observations 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

on  it,  as  also  on  the  late  Bill  for  that  purpose,  to  which  he 
had  refus'd  his  Assent ;  and  promising  to  observe  the  Board's 
Directions  relating  to  the  Lands  between  Nova  Scotia  and 
the  River  Sagadehock,  the  Paper  Currency  and  other  Matters 
in  their  last. 

Reed  from  Mr  Kilby 
Reed  Janrythe  i8th 
Act  Confirmed      Read  Ditto  27th 


THE   FRENCH   KING'S   DECLARATION  OF  WAR^ 

By  the  King 

Upon  the  breaking  out  of  the  Troubles  after  the  Death 
of  the  Emperor  Charles  the  Sixth,  the  King  took  all  Oppor- 
tunities of  shewing,  that  his  Majesty  desir'd  nothing  more 
earnestly  than  to  see  them  speedily  concluded,  by  an  equit- 
able Accommodation  between  the  Parties   in  War. 

The  Conduct  which  his  Majesty  has  ever  since  observed, 
has  sufficiently  demonstrated,  that  he  constantly  persisted 
in  the  same  Dispositions ;  and  his  Majesty,  not  being  de- 
sirous of  forming  any  Pretensions  for  himself  which  might 
in  the  least  obstruct  the  Re-establishment  of  Tranquillity 
in  Europe,  had  no  Notion  of  being  obliged  to  take  Part  in  the 
War,  otherwise  than  in  supplying  his  Allies  with  the  Succours 
which  he  was  engaged  to  give  them. 

Such  disinterested  Views  would  soon  have  restored  Peace, 
if  the  Court  of  London  had  thought  with  as  much  Equity  and 
Moderation,  and  if  it  had  consulted  nothing  but  the  Welfare 
and  Advantage  of  the  English  Nation ;  but  the  King  of 
England,  Elector  of  Hanover,  had  very  opposite  Intentions, 
which,  as  it  was  soon  perceiv'd,  aimed  at  nothing  less  than 
kindling  a  general  War.  Not  satisfied  with  dissuading  the 
Court  of  Vienna  from  entertaining  any  Notion  of  a  Recon- 
ciliation, and  with  nourishing  its  Animosity  by  the  most 

^Inclosed  in  Newcastle  to  Shirley  of  March  31,  p.  121. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

violent  Councils,  it  has  taken  all  Opportunities  of  irritating 
France,  by  every  where  disturbing  her  Maritime  Commerce, 
in  Contempt  of  the  Law  of  Nations,  and  the  most  solemn 
Treaties. 

The  Convention  of  Hanover,  in  October  1741,  seem'd  at 
least  to  have  assured  his  Majesty  of  the  Discontinuance  of 
such  Excesses.  The  King  of  England  during  the  Stay  he 
made  in  his  German  Dominions,  appeared  to  listen  to  the 
Complaints  which  were  made  to  him  on  this  Occasion,  and 
to  perceive  the  Justice  of  them ;  he  gave  his  Royal  Word 
that  he  would  cause  them  to  cease,  and  he  formally  engaged 
himself  not  to  disturb  the  Allies  of  the  King  in  the  Pursuit 
of  their  Rights ;  but  scarce  was  he  returned  to  London, 
before  he  forgot  all  his  Promises ;  and  as  soon  as  he  was  cer- 
tain that  the  King's  Army  had  entirely  quitted  Westphalia, 
he  caused  it  to  be  declared  by  his  Ministers,  that  the  Con- 
vention no  longer  subsisted,  and  that  he  looked  upon  himself 
as  disengaged  from  it. 

He  then  thought  there  was  no  longer  Necessity  to  act  with 
circumspection  :  Being  himself  a  personal  Enemy  of  France, 
he  seemed  to  have  no  other  Views  than  to  raise  up  such 
every  where  against  her :  This  became  the  principal  Point 
in  the  Instructions  of  his  Ministers  in  all  the  Courts  of  Eu- 
rope. The  Piracies  of  the  English  Men  of  War  increased 
with  Cruelty  and  Barbarity ;  even  the  Ports  of  the  Kingdom 
were  no  longer  an  Asylum  against  their  Insults.  The  Eng- 
lish have  at  length  dared  to  block  up  the  Port  of  Toulon, 
to  stop  all  Ships,  to  seize  upon  the  Merchandize  which  they 
carried,  and  to  take  even  the  Recruits  and  Ammunition  v/hich 
his  Majesty  was  sending  into  his  strong  Places. 

So  many  repeated  Injuries  and  Outrages  have  at  last  tired 
the  Patience  of  his  Majesty,  who  can  no  longer  bear  with 
them,  without  failing  in  the  Protection  which  he  owes  his 
own  Subjects,  in  the  Assistance  he  owes  his  Allies,  in  the 
Defence  of  himself,  his  Honour  and  Glory.  These  are  the 
just  Motives  that  no  longer  permit  his  Majesty  to  keep  within 
the  Bounds  of  Moderation  which  he  had  prescribed  to  him- 
self, and  which  constrain  him  to  declare  War,  as  he  does 

VOL.1  —  I  113 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

by  these  Presents,  against  the  King  of  England,  Elector  of 
Hanover,  both  by  Sea  and  Land. 

His  Majesty  ordains  and  enjoins  all  his  Subjects,  Vassals 
and  Servants,  to  fall  upon  the  Subjects  of  the  King  of  Eng- 
land, Elector  of  Hanover ;  forbids  them  in  the  most  express 
Manner  from  hereafter  having  any  Communication,  Com- 
merce, or  Intelligence  with  them,  on  Pain  of  Death ;  and 
consequently  his  Majesty  hath  from  henceforward  revoked, 
and  does  revoke  all  Permissions,  Passports,  Safe-Guards,  and 
Safe-Conducts,  which  may  have  been  given  by  himself,  or  by 
his  Lieutenant-Generals,  and  other  his  Ofhcers,  contrary  to 
these  Presents,  and  hath  declared  them,  and  does  declare 
them  null,  void  and  of  no  effect,  forbidding  all  Persons  from 
having  any  Regard  thereto. 

His  Majesty  orders  and  commands  the  Duke  de  Penthievre, 
Admiral  of  France,  the  Marshals  of  France,  the  Governors 
and  Lieutenant-Generals  for  his  Majesty  in  his  Provinces 
and  Armies,  Camp-Marshals,  Colonels,  Captains,  Heads  and 
Conductors  of  his  Military  People,  as  well  Horse  as  Foot, 
French  and  Foreigners,  and  all  other  his  Officers  whom  it  shall 
concern,  that  they,  and  each  of  them,  cause  the  Purport  of 
these  Presents  to  be  executed,  in  the  Extent  of  their  Powers 
and  Jurisdictions,  for  such  is  the  Will  of  his  Majesty.  He 
wills  and  intends  that  these  Presents  shall  be  published  and 
fixed  up  in  all  the  Cities,  as  well  Maritime  as  others,  and  in 
all  the  Ports,  Harbours,  and  other  Places  of  his  Kingdom 
and  Territories  under  his  Obedience,  where  it  shall  be  needful, 
that  none  may  pretend  Ignorance  thereof. 

Done  at  Versailles,  March  15,  1744 

Louis. 

Amelot. 


114 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE ' 

Boston,  N.  England,  March  19,  1743. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

In  Obedience  to  the  Direction?  of  the  late  Lords  Justices 
by  his  Majesty's  Sloop  Hawk  for  putting  this  Province  into 
the  best  posture  of  Defence,  and  guarding  it  against  any 
Surprize,  I  have  now  to  inform  your  Grace  that  I  have  rais'd 
ten  Companies  of  Snow  shoe  men  (as  they  are  call'd  here) 
consisting  of  fifty  Men  each  in  the  Frontier  parts  of  the 
province,  whose  Duty  it  is  to  hold  themselves  ready  at  the 
shortest  Warning  to  go  in  pursuit  of  any  Party  of  Indians, 
who  frequently  in  time  of  War  make  sudden  Incursions, 
whilst  there  is  a  deep  Snow  upon  the  Ground,  and  retreat  as 
suddenly  into  the  Woods  after  having  done  what  Mischief 
they  can  ;  in  which  case  it  is  necessary  that  the  Soldiers  who 
go  in  quest  of  'em,  should  make  use  of  Snow  shoes  and  Mogga- 
sons  to  travel  thro  the  Snow ;  And  I  have  given  Directions 
for  erecting  a  Line  of  Block-houses  and  Garrisons  round  the 
Frontier  parts,  which  lye  expos'd  to  the  French  and  Indians, 
to  be  situated  in  such  manner  as  to  be  capable  of  protecting 
the  Inhabitants  residing  thereabouts,  and  also  relieving  the 
Scouts  which  must,  in  case  of  War,  be  kept  continually  in 
Marches  round  the  Frontiers  to  prevent  any  sudden  Incur- 
sions ;  And  I  am  inform'd  considerable  progress  is  made  in 
erecting  'em,  and  that  several  of  'em  will  be  finish'd  by  July 
next;  Both  which  provisions  for  securing  the  Inhabitants 
and  intimidating  the  Indians  will,  I  am  satisfy'd,  have  a  very 
great  Effect. 

Since  my  beginning  this  I  have  receiv'd  a  second  Letter 
from  Mr  Stone  by  the  way  of  South  Carolina  dated  the  3d 
of  September  last  signifying  to  me  the  Directions  of  their 
Excellencies  the  late  Lord  Justices  that  I  should  put  the 
Forces  belonging  to  this  Province  into  such  a  Condition  as 
to  be  able  not  only  to  repell  the  French  Forces  if  they  should 

ip.R.O.,C.  0.5,900,  93. 

"5 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

attack  the  Province,  but  also  to  attack  them  if  it  should 
become  necessary,  which  Commands  I  shall  pay  a  due 
Obedience  to 

1  am  with  the  most  Dutiful!  regards 

My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Obedient, 

and  most  Devoted  Humble  Servant 
W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed:  "~ 

Boston,  New  England 
March  19.  1743/4 
GovR  Shirley 
5^  June  1st 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY  TO  THE    DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

Boston,  New  Engld.  March  23,  1743. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

This  waits  upon  your  Grace  at  the  earnest  Request  of  the 
Assembly  of  this  Province,  who  have  desired  me  to  make  their 
grateful  acknowledgements  to  your  Grace  for  the  Instances 
of  your  Goodness  to  this  Government  and  People,  particu- 
larly that  of  favouring  their  late  Petition  to  his  Majesty  for  a 
Supply  of  Cannon  and  other  Warlike  Stores  ;^  and  to  express 
their  Sense  of  the  Province's  Happiness  in  having  it's  Affairs 
lye  under  the  Care  and  Inspection  of  your  Grace  ;  and  to  beg 
the  Continuance  of  your  Grace's  Protection  of  it,  and  favour- 
able Regards  to  it's  Interests. 

It  is  with  the  utmost  pleasure,  my  Lord,  that  I  now  com- 
ply with  the  Assembly's  Request,  and  I  shall  think  myself 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  ^2702,  244.  A  transcript  is  in  the 
Library  of  Congress.  The  governor,  council,  and  assembly  thanked 
the  king  for  the  cannon  sent  in  an  earlier  address  of  Feb.  8  of 
this  year.     It  is  in  C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  83. 

2  See  Shirley  to  the  Lord  President,  Nov.  i,  1742,  and  notes. 

116 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

extremely  happy  if  I  may  be  Instrumental  In  conciliating 
your  Grace's  Favour  to  the  province  and  by  that  means  pro- 
moting the  Interest  of  it's  Affairs  in  Great  Britain,  in  hopes 
that  it  may  produce  from  them  suitable  Returns  of  Duty  to 
his  Majesty,  and  Gratitude  to  your  Grace,  the  obtaining  of 
which  Effects  I  should  esteem  the  highest  Honour  of  my 
Administration. 

I  beg  that  your  Grace  will  also  permit  me  to  join  to  the 
Thanks  of  the  Assembly  my  own  most  Dutiful  Acknowledg- 
ments to  your  Grace  for  your  Goodness  in  procuring  by  your 
Grace's  Recommendation  his  Majesty's  most  gracious  Answer 
to  the  Province's  beforemention'd  Petition,  and  for  the  many 
Instances  I  have  personally  receiv'd  of  your  Grace's  Pat- 
ronage and  protection,  for  which  I  shall  ever  remain  with 
the  greatest  Duty  and  Gratitude 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Obedient 
and  most  Devoted,  Humble 
Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 
Endorsed: 

Boston.     March  23,  1743/4. 

GovR  Shirley 
^     June  1st. 

HIS  MAJESTY'S  DECLARATION  OF  WAR  AGAINST 
THE  FRENCH  KING  ^ 

George  R. 

The  Troubles,  which  broke  out  in  Germany,  on  Account 
of  the  Succession  of  the  late  Emperor  Charles  the  Sixth, 
having  been  begun,  and  carried  on  by  the  Instigation,  Assist- 

^  Copies  are  in  the  British  Museum  and  in  the  John  Carter 
Brown  Library.  Copies  of  the  Boston  reprint  (1744)  are  in  the 
Amer.  Antiq.  Society  and  Boston  Public  Library.  Later  reprints 
are  in  Amer.  Antiq.  Society,  Trans.  &  Coll,  v.  12  and  Conn.  Hist. 
Soc.  II,  135.     See  Newcastle  to  Shirley,  March  31,  p.  121. 

117 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ance,  and  Support  of  the  French  King,  with  a  View  to  over- 
turn the  Balance  of  Power  in  Europe,  and  to  extend  the 
dangerous  Influence  of  that  Crown,  in  direct  Violation  of  the 
solemn  Guaranty  of  the  Pragmatic  Sanction,  given  hy  him 
in  the  Year  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  thirty-eight, 
in  Consideration  of  the  Cession  of  Lorraine ;  and  We  having 
on  Our  Part  executed  Our  Engagements  for  maintaining  the 
Pragmatic  Sanction,  with  that  good  Faith  which  is  insepa- 
rable from  Us ;  and  having  opposed  the  Attempts  made 
against  the  Dominions  of  the  Queen  of  Hungary ;  we  are  not 
surprised  that  our  Conduct  in  this  Respect,  should  have 
drawn  upon  Us  the  Resentment  of  the  French  King,  who  has 
found  his  ambitious  Views,  in  a  great  Measure,  disappointed 
by  the  Assistance  We  have  furnished  to  Our  Ally,  unjustly 
attacked  by  him ;  or  that  he  should  alledge  it  as  a  principal 
Reason  for  declaring  War  against  Us. 

From  the  Time  that  we  found  Ourselves  obliged,  for  the 
Maintenance  of  the  just  Rights  of  Our  Subjects,  to  enter  into 
a  War  with  Spain,  instead  of  observing  a  strict  Neutrality, 
which  We  might  have  promised  ourselves  on  the  Part  of  the 
French  King,  from  whom  We  were  even  founded  by  Treaty 
to  have  demanded  Assistance  ;  he  has  given  Encouragement 
and  Support  to  Our  Enemies,  by  conniving  at  his  Subjects, 
acting  as  Privateers  under  Spanish  commissions,  both  in 
Europe  and  America,  and  by  sending  in  the  year  One 
thousand  seven  hundred  and  forty,  a  strong  Squadron  into 
the  American  Seas,  in  order  to  prevent  us  from  prosecuting 
the  just  War  which  we  were  carrying  on  against  Spain  in 
those  Parts ;  and  We  have  the  most  authentick  Proof,  that 
an  Order  was  given  to  the  Commander  of  the  French  Squad- 
ron, not  only  to  act  in  a  hostile  Manner  against  Our  Ships, 
either  jointly  with  the  Spaniards,  or  separately ;  but  even 
to  concert  Measures  with  Our  Enemies,  for  attacking  one  of 
Our  principal  Dominions  in  America ;  a  Duplicate  of  that 
Order  dated  the  Seventh  of  October,  One  thousand  seven 
hundred  and  forty,  having  fallen  into  the  Hands  of  the  Com- 
mander in  Chief  of  Our  Squadron  in  the  West  Indies.  This 
injurious  Proceeding  was  greatly  aggravated  by  the  French 

ii8 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Minister  at  Our  Court,  having  declared  on  Occasion  of  send- 
ing the  said  Squadron ;  that  the  French  king  was  very  far 
from  having  any  Design  or  Intention  of  breaking  with  Us. 

The  same  offensive  Conduct  was  continued,  on  the  Part 
of  the  French  King,  towards  Us,  by  his  Squadron  in  the 
Mediterranean,  in  the  Year  One  thousand  seven  hundred 
and  forty-one,  joining  with  and  protecting  the  Ships  of 
Our  Enemies,  in  Sight  of  Our  Fleet,  which  was  preparing  to 
attack  them. 

These  unwarrantable  Proceedings ;  the  notorious  Breach 
of  Treaties,  by  repairing  the  Fortifications,  and  erecting  New 
Works  at  Dunkirk ;  the  open  Hostilities  lately  committed 
against  Our  Fleet  in  the  Mediterranean ;  the  Affront  and 
Indignity  oifered  to  Us,  by  the  Reception  of  the  Son  of  the 
Pretender  to  Our  Crown,  in  the  French  Dominions ;  the 
Embarkation  actually  made  at  Dunkirk,  of  a  considerable 
Body  of  Troops,  notoriously  designed  for  an  Invasion  of  this 
Kingdom,  in  Favour  of  the  Pretender  to  Our  Crown ;  and 
the  sending  a  Squadron  of  French  Ships  of  War  into  the 
Channel,  to  support  the  said  Embarkation  and  Invasion; 
will  be  lasting  Monuments  of  the  little  Regard  had  by  the 
French  Court  for  the  most  solemn  Engagements,  when  the 
Observance  of  them  is  inconsistent  with  Interest,  Ambition, 
or  Resentment. 

We  cannot  omit  taking  Notice  of  the  unjust  Insinuations 
contained  in  the  French  King's  Declaration  of  War  against 
Us,  with  respect  to  the  Convention  made  at  Hanover,  in 
October,  One  thousand  seven  hundred  and  forty-one.  That 
Convention,  regarding  Our  Electorate  only,  had  no  Relation 
to  Our  Conduct  as  King  of  Great  Britain,  the  Allegations 
concerning  it,  are  groundless  and  injurious ;  Our  Proceeding 
in  that  Respect,  having  been  perfectly  consistent  with  that 
Good  Faith,  which  We  have  always  made  the  Rule  of  Our 
Actions. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  mention  the  Objections  made  to  the 
Behaviour  of  Our  Ministers  in  Foreign  Courts ;  since  it  is 
notorious  that  the  principal  View  and  Object  of  the  Negotia- 
tions of  the  French  Ministers  in  the  several  Courts  of  Europe, 

119 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

have  been  either  to  stir  up  intestine  Commotions  in  the 
Countries  where  they  resided ;  or  to  create  Differences  and 
Misunderstandings  between  them  and  their  respective  AlHes. 

The  Charge  of  Piracy,  Cruelty,  and  Barbarity  against  Our 
Ships  of  War,  is  Equally  unjust  and  unbecoming;  and  We 
have  all  such  Proceedings  so  much  in  Abhorrence,  that,  if  any 
Practices  of  that  Nature  had  been  made  appear  to  us.  We 
should  have  taken  effectual  Care  to  put  a  Stop  to  them,  and 
to  have  punished  the  Offenders  in  the  severest  Manner, 

We  being  therefore  indispensably  obliged  to  take  up  Arms, 
and  entirely  relying  on  the  Help  of  Almighty  God,  who  knows 
the  Uprightness  of  Our  Intentions,  have  thought  fit  to  declare 
and  do  hereby  declare  War  against  the  French  King;  and 
We  will,  in  pursuance  of  such  Declaration,  vigorously  prose- 
cute the  same  by  Sea  and  Land ;  being  assured  of  the  ready 
Concurrence  and  Assistance  of  all  Our  loving  Subjects,  in  so 
just  a  Cause  :  And  we  do  hereby  will,  and  require,  Our  Gen- 
erals and  Commanders  of  Our  Forces,  Our  Commissioners 
for  executing  the  Office  of  High  Admiral  of  Great  Britain, 
Our  Lieutenants  of  Our  several  Counties,  Governors  of  Our 
Forts  and  Garrisons,  and  all  other  Officers  under  them,  by 
Sea  and  Land,  to  do  and  execute  all  Acts  of  Hostility  in  the 
Prosecution  of  this  War  against  the  said  French  King,  his 
Vassals,  and  Subjects,  and  to  oppose  their  Attempts ;  will- 
ing and  requiring,  all  Our  Subjects  to  take  Notice  of  the 
same,  whom  We  henceforth  strictly  forbid  to  hold  any  Corre- 
spondence or  Communication  with  the  Subjects  of  the  French 
King :  And  We  do  hereby  command  Our  own  Subjects,  and 
advertise  all  other  Persons  of  what  Nation  soever,  not  to 
transport  or  carry  any  Soldiers,  Arms,  Powder,  Ammunition, 
or  other  contraband  Goods,  to  any  of  the  Territories,  Lands, 
Plantations,  or  Countries  of  the  said  French  King ;  declaring, 
that  whatsoever  Ship  or  Vessel  shall  be  met  withal,  trans- 
porting or  carrying  any  Soldiers,  Arms,  Powder,  Ammuni- 
tion, or  other  contraband  Goods,  to  any  of  the  Territories, 
Lands,  Plantations,  or  Countries  of  the  said  French  King, 
the  same  being  taken,  shall  be  condemned  as  good  and  law- 
ful Prize.     And  whereas  there  are  remaining  in  Our  Kingdom 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

divers  of  the  Subjects  of  the  French  King,  we  do  hereby  de- 
clare our  Royal  Intention  to  be,  that  all  the  French  Subjects, 
who  shall  demean  themselves  dutifully  towards  us,  shall  be 
safe  in  their  Persons  and  estates. 

Given  at  our  Court  at  St.  James's,  the  Twenty  ninth 
Day  of  March,  1744,  in  the  Seventeenth  Year  of  our  Reign. 
God  Save  the  King. 


DUKE  OF  NEWCASTLE   TO  WILLIAM   SHIRLEY » 

Whitehall,  March  31st,  1744. 

Sir, 

The  French  King  having  declared  war  against  His  Maj- 
esty, (as  you  will  see  by  the  inclosed  Copy  of  His  Declara- 
tion for  that  Purpose,  which  is  full  of  the  grossest  and  most 
indecent  Misrepresentations,  and  Reflections  upon  His 
Majesty's  Conduct,)  I  am  to  acquaint  you,  by  His  Majesty's 
Command,  that  on  Thursday  last,  the  29th  Inst.,  a  great 
Council  was  held  at  St.  James's,  where  His  Majesty  ap- 
proved, and  has  since  signed,  a  Declaration  of  War  against 
the  French  King,  and  ordered  that  the  same  should  be  pub- 
lished on  this  Day,  by  the  Heralds  at  Arms,  in  the  usual 
Places,  and  with  the  accustomed  Formalities  on  the  like 
Occasions ;  which  has  been  done,  accordingly. 

I  send  you  inclosed  a  printed  Copy  of  the  said  Declara- 
tion, and  am  commanded  to  signify  to  you  His  Majesty's 
Pleasure,  that  you  cause  it  to  be  proclaimed  in  the  Colony 
under  your  Government,  that  His  Majesty's  Subjects  hav- 

^  The  letter  here  printed  as  to  Governor  Shirley  appears  to  have 
been  a  circular  one  addressed  to  the  several  Governors  in  America. 
See  Rhode  Island  Col.  Rec.  5,  80,  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  11,  132, 
140.  See  also  Shirley's  reply  of  June  2  on  p.  125.  The  proclama- 
tions of  war  by  France  and  England  respectively  are  printed  on 
pp.  112  and  117.  The  second  English  proclamation  named  was  of 
date  March  29  and  was  headed  "His  Majesty's  most  Gracious 
Declaration  For  the  Encouragement  of  His  Ships  of  War  and  Pri- 
vateers."    It  was  printed  in  the  London  Gazette  olM-Axch.  31,  1744. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ing  this  Notice,  may  take  Care  to  prevent  any  Mischief, 
which  otherwise  they  might  suffer  from  the  Enemy,  and  do 
their  Duty  in  their  several  Stations,  to  distress  and  annoy 
the  Subjects  of  the  French  King :  And  His  Majesty  would 
have  you  be  very  rigorous  and  severe,  in  preventing  any 
Ammunition,  or  Stores  of  any  Kind,  from  being  carried  to 
them ;  and  you  are  to  use  all  proper  Methods,  that  may  be 
most  effectual  for  that  Purpose, 

I  send  you  inclosed,  His  Majesty's  Proclamation  for  the 
Distribution  of  Prizes  taken  by  His  Majesty's  Ships  of  war, 
or  Privateers,  which,  you  will  take  Care,  may  be  published 
in  the  Colony  under  your  Government :  And  you  will  do 
every  thing  in  your  Power,  to  encourage  His  Majesty's 
Subjects  to  fit  out  Ships  to  act  as  Privateers  against  the 
Enemy ;  And  you  will,  upon  the  Receipt  of  this  Letter,  take 
all  Opportunities,  as  far  as  depends  upon  you,  to  distress  and 
annoy  the  French  in  their  Settlements,  Trade  and  Com- 
merce. 

I  am.  Sir 

Your  most  obedient  humble  servant, 

Newcastle. 
To  the  Governor  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY   TO   THE    GENERAL    COURT 
OF   MASSACHUSETTS  1 

Gentlemen  of  the  Council  and 

House  of  Representatives, 

As  the  Acquisition  of  the  Country  of  Nova  Scotia,  and 
more  especially  of  the  Fortress  at  Port  Royal  (now  Annapo- 
lis Royal)  has  been  always  thought  by  this  Government, 

^  Mass.  Arch.  Journals  House  of  Representatives.  On  May 
21  Major  John  Paul  Mascarene,  Lieutenant  Governor  of  Nova 
Scotia,  had  written  to  Shirley  asking  for  assistance  to  be  sent  to 
Port  Royal.  In  addition  to  this  message  to  the  Assembly  of 
Massachusetts  Shirley  sent  the  appeal  for  aid  on  to  Rhode  Island 
and  other  colonies  (Kimball,  Corres.  Col.  Govs,  of  R.  I.  i,  265),  but 
New  England  was  in  poor  financial  condition  to  meet  the  demands 
made  upon  her  from  the  northeast  and  at  the  same  time  defend 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ever  since  it's  first  Settlement  by  the  French,  to  be  a  Point 
of  the  greatest  Importance  to  the  Welfare  and  Safety  of  this 
Province ;  and  many  Designs  have  been  form'd,  and  Expe- 
ditions fitted  out  for  reducing  that  Place,  and  recovering 
it  out  of  the  Hands  of  the  French,  so  I  cannot  but  hope  you 
will  think  it  of  equal  Necessity  to  preserve  it  for  his  Majesty 
at  this  Juncture,  from  any  Attempts  of  the  Enemy ;  And  as 
it  appears  highly  probable  that  the  French  will  make  some 
Attempts  upon  that  Place  before  the  Garrison  there  can  have 
a  Reinforcement  from  Great  Britain,  I  believe  you  will 
judge  it  a  Piece  of  Service  that  will  be  highly  acceptable  to 
his  Majesty,  and  tend  to  secure  some  of  the  most  valuable 
Interests  of  this  Province,  to  send  some  Recruits  for  that 
Garrison  to  continue  there  for  a  few  Months,  or  till  it  be 
sufficiently  reinforced  from  Great  Britain.  The  Expence  of 
this  will  not  be  very  great  (as  we  may  suppose  the  Men  will 
have  both  Pay  and  Subsistence  from  his  Majesty :)  And 
therefore, 

Gentlemen  of  the  House  of  Representatives, 

I  hope  you  will  readily  provide  for  it ;  I  shall  only  add  upon 
this  Head,  that  if  any  thing  be  done  herein,  the  least  Delay 
may  render  our  good  Intentions  wholly  ineffectual. 

Gentlemen  of  the  Council  and  House  of  Representatives 
I  am  of  Opinion  that  it  is  highly  requisite  forthwith  to  pass 
a  Law,  prohibiting  upon  great  Penalties  all  Trade  with  our 
Enemies,  and  more  especially  the  supplying  of  them  with 
Arms,  Ammunition  or  Provisions  of  any  Kind  whatsoever. 
The  passing  of  such  a  Law  and  a  strict  Execution  of  it  will, 
I  am  persuaded,  very  much  contribute  to  streighten  and  re- 
duce the  French  Colonies  and  Settlements  in  particular,  and 

her  western  boundaries.  As  Shirley  wrote  Newcastle  on  the  day  of 
this  message,  there  was  no  gold  or  silver  coin  circulating  in  any  of 
the  four  colonies  of  New  England.  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5.  884,  p.  315. 
The  call  for  aid  for  Nova  Scotia  was  renewed  on  June  8,  and  on  June 
10  Bradstreet  brought  to  Boston  a  call  from  Patt.  Heron,  Thomas 
Prendergast,  and  others  who  were  prisoners  of  war  at  Louisbourg, 
asking  that  provisions  be  allowed  them.     C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  104. 

123 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

your  Neglect  to  do  it,  will  soon  be  attended  with  mischievous 

effects  to  the  Province. 

Council  Chamber,  May  31,  1744. 

W.  Shirley.* 

^  As  a  result  of  this  message  the  House  voted  on  June  12,  1744, 
to  raise  two  independent  companies  of  volunteers  of  sixty  men 
each.  On  June  19  Shirley  in  consequence  of  a  memorial  from 
President  (Paul  Mascarene)  and  the  Council  of  Annapolis  asked 
for  two  hundred  men,  but  the  request  was  not  granted.  (Mass. 
Arch. ;  C.  O.  5,  884,  p.  467.)    The  Act  of  June  12  follows : 

M:::rchufem  Bay  }  I"  ^^e  House  of  Rep^f  June  ,.?  ,744 

Whereas  the  Preservation  of  His  Majestys  Fortress  at  An- 
napolis Royall  is  an  Affair  of  Great  Importance  to  the  Crown  as 
well  as  to  the  Respective  Governments  in  New  England  and  that 
until  the  Arrival  of  Some  Forces  there  from  Great  Britain  it  may 
be  for  His  Majestys  Service  to  Afford  them  some  immediate 
Relief. 

Therefore  Voted  that  His  Excellency  the  Captain  General  be 
desired  to  give  orders  for  raising  two  Independent  Companys  of 
Voluntiers  Consisting  of  Sixty  men  each  exclusive  of  Officers  to  be 
sent  to  that  Fortress  as  soon  as  may  be  at  the  Expense  of  this 
province  and  for  encouragement  to  good  and  Effective  men  to 
Enlist  into  this  service  that  there  be  and  hereby  is  granted  to  be 
paid  out  of  the  Province  Treasury  to  each  able  Bodied  man  that 
shall  Enlist  Twenty  pounds  old  tenor  or  other  Bills  of  Credit 
Equivalent  and  that  they  be  freed  from  all  ordinary  Impresses  in 
this  Province  three  years  after  their  Return  and  that  His  Excel- 
lency the  Governour  be  desired  to  Acquaint  the  neighbouring 
Governments  with  the  state  of  that  Fortress,  that  they  may  afford 
a  reasonable  Aid  of  men  for  the  aforesaid  Purpose  and  inasmuch 
as  the  said  Forces  are  neither  to  be  Subsisted  nor  paid  by  this 
province  during  their  Continuance  there  that  His  Excellency  be 
further  desired  to  use  his  good  Offices  with  the  Commander  of 
that  Fortress  in  Obtaining  Pay  and  Subsistance  for  the  said  Com- 
panys from  the  Crown  until  they  return  home. 

Sent  up  for  Concurrence 

T.  CUSHING  Spk'. 
In  Council  June  I2*?  1744 
Read  and  Concurred 
J.  WiLLARD  Secry. 

Consented  to  W.  Shirley. 
See  also  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  11,  180,  and  Kimball,  Corres.  Col. 
Govs,  of  R.  I.  I,  263. 

X24 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

(Duplicate) 

Boston,  New  Engld,  June  2d,  1744. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

This  day  In  the  Afternoon  Capt.  Jelfe  In  his  Majesty's 
Sloop  Swallow  arriv'd  here,  by  whom  I  had  the  Honour  to 
receive  your  Grace's  letter  dated  the  31st  March  last  ^ 
signifying  to  me  his  Majesty's  pleasure,  that  I  should  cause 
his  Declaration  of  War  against  the  French  King  to  be  pro- 
clalm'd  In  the  Province  under  my  Government;  which  was 
accordingly  done  here  In  a  few  hours  afterwards  with  the 
formalities  us'd  upon  the  like  occasions  In  this  Province,  the 
whole  Regiment  of  Militia  belonging  to  this  place  attending 
under  Arms,  and  the  people  universally  expressing  a  just 
Resentment  of  the  Indignities  offer'd  his  Majesty  by  the 
French  King's  declaration  of  War,  and  an  English  spirit 
upon  the  proclamation  of  his  Majesty's  Declaration  :  and 
in  Obedience  to  his  Majesty's  Commands  I  shall  exert  my- 
self to  the  utmost  of  my  Power  In  prompting  his  Subjects 
within  my  Government,  not  only  to  use  all  proper  means  for 
their  own  defence  against  the  Enemy,  but  to  do  their  Duty 
In  their  several  Stations  to  distress,  and  Annoy  the  Subjects 
of  the  French  King  In  their  Settlements,  Trade  and  Com- 
merce.^ 

I  also  caus'd  his  Majesty's  Proclamation  for  the  Distri- 
bution of  Prizes  taken  by  his  Majesty's  Ships  of  War,  or 
Privateers  to  be  publish'd  here  Immediately  after  the  pro- 
claiming of  his  Declaration  of  War  against  the  French  King ; 

^B.M.,  Additional  Manuscript  j2yoj,  81.  A  transcript  is  in  the 
Library  of  Congress.  On  June  16  Shirley  wrote  the  Lords  of  Trade, 
announcing  that  the  declaration  of  war  had  been  proclaimed  in  the 
province,  stating  the  needs  of  Fort  Dummer  and  an  estimate  of 
the  expenses  of  the  war.  The  letter  is  in  C.  O.  5,  884,  p.  303. 
A  somewhat  similar  letter  of  June  20  to  the  Earl  of  Harrington 
is  in  ibid.  327. 

^Newcastle's  letter  of  Mar.  31  Is  on  p.  121. 

^  See  Shirley  to  John  Stoddard  of  June  2  and  3,  pp.  127,  128,  post. 

I2S 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

and  shall  do  everything  in  my  Power  to  encourage  his 
Majesty's  Subjects  to  fit  out  Ships  to  act  as  privateers  against 
the  Enemy. 

Capt.  Jelfe  deliver'd  me  also  your  Grace's  Packet  directed 
to  the  Governours  of  his  Majesty's  other  Provinces  and 
Colonies  on  the  Continent  of  North  America,  all  which  I 
dispatch'd  forward  within  three  hours  afterwards  by  trusty 
Expresses  by  Land  to  the  respective  Governours,  except  that 
to  the  Comander  in  Chief  of  Nova  Scotia,  for  the  Convey- 
ance of  which  I  have  caus'd  an  Express  Boat  to  be  hir'd  by 
the  Assembly,  which  is  to  Sail  for  Annapolis  Royal  with  the 
first  fair  wind.^ 

Before  my  Receipt  of  your  Grace's  Letter  I  had  Issu'd  a 
proclamation  with  the  Advice  of  his  Majesty's  Council  here 
for  preventing  any  Ammunition,  Stores,  provisions  or  Mer- 
chandize of  any  kind  from  being  carried  to  any  of  the  French 
settlements  or  Territories  by  his  Majesty's  Subjects  of  this 
Province,  and  had  Recommended  it  to  the  Assembly  to  pass 
a  Law  with  severe  penalties  in  it  for  the  same  End :  ^  and 
shall  endeavour  to  use  all  methods,  which  may  be  proper  and 
most  effectual  for  that  and  the  other  purposes  mention'd 
in  your  Graces  Letter;  and  am  wth  the  most  Dutiful! 
Regards, 

My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Obedient, 
and  most  Devoted  Humble 
Servant 

W.  Shirley. 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

^  Shirley's  attention  during  the  period  between  the  receipt  of 
this  letter  and  the  Loulsbourg  campaign  appears  to  have  been  de- 
voted in  large  part  to  the  welfare  and  defense  of  Nova  Scotia. 
His  letter  to  Newcastle  of  July  7  {post,  p.  131)  gives  an  Illustra- 
tion of  this  attention  shown  In  the  forwarding  of  troops,  and  leads 
one  to  expect  further  activity  in  the  Northeast  as  the  war  pro- 
gresses. 

2  See  Shirley  to  General  Court,  May  31,  1744,  ante,  p.  122. 
^  126 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  JOHN  STODDARD  ^ 

Boston,  2d  June,  1744. 
Sir, 

I  have  just  now  reed,  his  Majs  declaration  of  War  Against 
the  French  King  with  his  Majs  Orders  to  publish  it,  I  would 
not  delay  to  Inform  you  of  it  till  the  Copies  of  it  are  printed 
off;  But  I  desire  you  would  forthwith  send  to  all  your 
Frontier  Towns  &  Settlements  in  your  County  to  Advertise 
them  hereof  and  to  put  them  upon  all  Possible  Care  not  to 
Expose  themselves  to  be  Surprised  by  the  Enemy.     I  desire 

^  Original,  Historical  Society  of  Pennsylvania.  On  the  same 
date  Shirley  sent  to  other  governors  a  copy  of  the  declaration  of 
war  received  from  St.  James,  following  the  same  with  the  Act  of 
the  Massachusetts  Assembly  making  provision  for  the  Albany 
Congress, 

In  reply  to  one  such  letter  came  the  following  from  Governor 
Law  of  Connecticut  (Conn.  Hist.  Society,  Law  Papers  2,  11) : 

Sr.  Milford  June  19  1744 

I  had  the  favour  of  Yours  of  the  2d  Instant  with  the  Proclama- 
tion of  Warr  as  also  the  Act  of  your  Asembly  on  the  5th  I  reed  on 
fryday  night  following.  Respecting  Comrs  for  the  Congress  att 
Albany  our  Assembly  had  Provided  In  Case  Such  an  Occasion 
should  happen  that  with  the  advice  of  the  Council  I  should  send 
Comrs  but  the  time  was  so  farr  lapsd  as  to  Render  that  Imprac- 
ticable so  I  gave  a  Comn  to  Govr  Wolcott  and  others  who  pro- 
ceeded on  Monday  following  hoping  to  meet  with  your  Comrs  at 
Sheffield.  I  would  also  Inform  your  Excellency  That  wee  have 
appointed  a  Comtee  of  Warr  att  Hartford  who  are  impowered  to 
send  forces  to  youer  Assistance  in  Case  of  any  Invasion  or  Eminent 
danger  thereof  upon  Request  made 

I  Subscribe 

You  Excelencies 

very  humble  Servant 
JoNATH  Law 
To  W  Shirley  Esqr 

The  correspondence  with  Rhode  Island  is  In  Kimball,  Corres. 
Col.  Govs,  of  Rhode  Island  (i,  259,  262).  On  Jun.  5  Secretary 
Wlllard  of  Massachusetts  asked  that  the  southern  colony  appoint 
commissioners  to  the  Albany  Conference,  the  reply  coming  from 
Governor  Greene  on  June  8. 

127 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

also  that  you  would  forthwith  fit  out  a  proper  number  of 
men  to  Scout  in  Such  Places  on  your  Borders  where  they  may 
be  Most  Likely  to  discover  Any  Motion  of  the  Enemy  Espe- 
cially Such  as  may  be  Sent  out  from  the  French  fort  at  Crown 
Point    . 

I  am 
Sir 

Your  most  Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
To  the  Honble  Colo.  Stoddard 

P.  S.  I  have  receiv'd  yours  by  Col.Dwight,  which  will  be 
of  great  service ;  I  will  take  care  of  your  own  Interest : 
and  approve  much  of  your  scheme  for  carrying  on  the  War, 
I  shall  govern  myself  very  much  by  it. 

w.  s. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   JOHN   STODDARD  ^ 

Province  of  the  Massachusetts  bay 

(Seal)   By  his  Excellency  the  Governour 

You  are  hereby  ordered  forthwith  to  impress  or  en- 
list out  of  the  Regiment  of  Militia  under  your  Command  one 
hundred  able  Bodied  Effective  Men  for  the  Defence  and  Pro- 
tection of  his  majesties  Subjects  in  the  Western  frontiers  of 
this  Province  against  the  Enemy  to  be  posted  and  disposed 
of  in  such  manner  as  I  shall  farther  Order,  and  you  must  Take 
effectual  Care  that  the  said  Men  be  compleatly  furnished 
with  Arms  and  Ammunition  for  all  which  this  shall  be  your 
Sufficient  Warrant 

Given  under  my  hand  and  Seal  at  Boston  June  the  3d  1744. 

W.  Shirley. 

To  John  Stoddard  Esqr.,  Collonel  of  the  Regiment  of  Militia 
in  the  County  of  Hampshire. 

^  Original  Mass.  Hist.  Society,  Colonel  Israel  Williams  Manu- 
scripts 71,  D  p.  8.  See  also  Shirley  to  Col.  Thomas  Bowen,  June 
13,  1744,  directing  him  to  forward  men  to  Stoddard.  Ms.  in 
Boston  Public  Library,  No.  225. 

128 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE  MASSACHUSETTS 
COMMISSIONERS  1 

[Commission] 

William  Shirley  Esqr  Captain  General  and  Gov- 
(Seal)  ernour  in  Chief  in  and  over  his  Majestys  Province 
of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  in  New  England  — 

To  all  unto  whom  these  Presents  Shall  Come  Greeting — 
Know  Ye  that  by  and  with  the  advice  of  the  Great  and 
General  Court  or  Assembly  of  his  Majestys  Said  Province 
of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  at  their  Session  begun  and  held 
Boston  the  thirtyeth  of  May  Last  I  have  Constituted  and 
Appointed  and  by  these  presents  do  Constitute  and  appoint 
Authorize  and  Impower,  John  Stoddard,  Jacob  Wendell, 
Thomas  Berry,  John  Choate  and  Thomas  Hutchinson  Esqrs 
or  any  three  of  them  Commissioners  for  and  In  behalf  of  this 
Province  to  appear  at  the  City  of  Albany  or  Elsewhere  within 
the  Province  of  New  York  on  the  twelfth  of  this  Instant 
June  or  as  Soon  after-wards  as  may  be,  then  and  there  to 
Treat  with  his  Majestys  Governour  of  New  York  aforesaid 
or  with  any  Commissioners  that  may  be  appointed  on  the 
Part  of  that  Province  or  with  any  Commissioners  that  may 
be  appointed  on  the  part  of  the  Governments  of  New  Hamp- 
shire Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island  or  any  of  them,  and 
on  the  part  and  Behalf  of  this  Province  to  make  Such  agree- 
ments and  Stipulations  with  the  aforesaid  Governour  or 
Commissioners  or  any  of  them  Either  Joyntlv  or  Separately 

^  Original,  Conn.  Hist.  Society,  Law  Papers,  5,  14.  Printed : 
Conn.  Hist.  Society  Coll.  11,  174.  These  commissioners  were 
appointed  to  meet  the  Indians  at  Albany.  An  account  of  the 
negotiations  of  the  commissioners  from  Connecticiit  and  Massa- 
chusetts with  the  Indians  giving  speeches  of  both  parties  is  in 
ibid.  II,  185-197.  On  June  29  the  Journal  of  the  Massachusetts 
Commissioners  was  given  to  the  House  of  Representatives  at  Bos- 
ton (Mass.  Archives,  Journal  of  the  Assembly). 
VOL.1  —  K  129 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

as  they  Shall  think  Equal  and  Necessary  for  the  aforesaid 
Several  Governments  or  any  of  them  to  Enter  Into  for  their 
Mutual  Safety  and  Defence  or  for  annoying  the  Enemy  In 
the  Present  Warr  Such  Agreement  to  be  binding  and  Obliga- 
tory on  the  aforesaid  Respective  Governments  and  every 
of  them.  And  also  to  Treat  with  the  said  Governments  or 
Commissioners  Chosen  by  them  Respectively,  Either 
Separately  or  Conjunctly  as  they  Shall  Judge  best  in  order 
to  Accomplish  the  Ends  above  mentioned.  And  Further 
as  a  Treaty  Is  Intended  between  the  Province  of  New  York 
and  the  Indians  bordering  on  the  Said  Province  to  be  held  at 
Albany  aforesaid  on  the  before  mentioned  twelfth  of  June 
Instant,  I  do  by  these  Presents  by  and  with  the  Advice 
of  the  Great  and  General  Court  aforesaid  Constitute  and 
Appoint  the  Said  John  Stoddard  Jacob  Wendell  Thomas 
Berry  John  Choate  and  Thos  Hutchinson  or  any  three  of 
them  Commissioners  for  and  in  behalf  of  this  Province  to 
Treat  with  and  Engage  the  Friendship  of  the  Indians  Com- 
monly Called  the  Six  nations  of  Indians  or  any  other  Nation 
or  Tribe  of  Indians  Whatsoever  which  shall  be  there  (having 
first  Obtained  Leave  of  the  aforesaid  Governour  of  New  York 
for  that  Purpose)  to  the  Province  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay. 
And  the  Said  Commissioners  are  also  Hereby  Impowered  to 
agree  to  act  and  Transact  any  other  Matter  and  thing  for 
the  Weal  Safety  and  Defence  of  this  Province  as  they  may 
Judge  Proper  In  and  about  the  Premises  according  to  Such 
Instructions  as  they  have  herewith  Received. 

Given  under  my  hand  and  the  Seal  of  the  Province  of 
the  Massachusetts  Bay  aforesaid  at  Boston  the  Eighth  Day 
of  June  in  the  Seventeenth  Year  of  the  Reign  of  our  Sovereign 
Lord  George  the  Second  over  Great  Brittain  France  &  Ireland 
King  Defender  of  the  Faith  &c.  Annoque  Domini  one  Thou- 
sand Seven  Hundred  and  forty  four. 

W.   Shirley. 
By  His  Excellency's  Command 

J.  WiLLARD  SeCRY. 


130 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY    TO    THE    DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE ' 

My  Lord  Duke,  ^°^^°^'  ^^  ^^8^^'  ^""^^  7,  1744- 

Six  days  ago  I  caus'd  to  be  embarqu'd  on  Board  a  Trans- 
port upwards  of  seventy  of  the  Soldiers  lately  rais'd  here 
for  the  Reinforcement  of  His  Majesty's  Garrison  at  Annapolis 
Royal,  and  to  proceed  the  next  day  under  Convoy  of  one  of 
the  Province  Guard-ships  for  Annapolis,  where  I  doubt  not, 
from  the  Winds  we  have  since  had,  but  that  they  arriv'd 
two  days  ago.  I  was  the  more  sollicitous  to  dispatch  this 
part  of  the  succour,  because  from  the  Intelligence  I  have 
lately  receiv'd  from  Louisbourg,  I  have  the  strongest  reasons 
to  conclude  that  the  French  from  that  place  have  rais'd  a 
party  of  five  hundred  Indians  at  Menies  to  be  join'd  by  other 
forces  in  order  to  attack  Annapolis  Royal  by  land,  for  which 
purpose  I  have  a  certain  Account  that  two  large  Mortars 
are  shipp'd  from  Louisbourg  with  a  large  Quantity  of  Small 
Arms  on  Board  one  of  the  arm'd  Vessells  which  took  Canso 
and  was  seen  to  enter  the  Gut  of  Canso  again  about  a  Month 
ago ;  which  Mortars  can't  be  probably  thought  to  be  design'd 
for  any  other  place  than  to  be  landed  at  Menies,  and  trans- 
ported from  thence  thro  a  good  Road  to  Annapolis  Royal : 
But  as  I  understand  the  repairs  of  the  Old  Works  of  the 
Garrison  have  been  carry'd  on  with  the  utmost  Diligence 
by  near  an  hundred  Workmen  under  the  Direction  of  Mr 
Bastide,  and  his  Assistant,  ever  since  the  Garrison  receiv'd 
the  first  Account  which  I  sent  them  of  the  Declaration  of 
Warr  between  the  two  Crowns  on  both  sides,  and  the  Garri- 
son will  have  receiv'd  a  reinforcement  of  the  above  mention'd 
Soldiers,  which  will  (I  believe)  be  augmented  with  a  further 
number  from  this  place  in  a  few  days,  I  am  in  hopes  the 
Enemy,  in  case  they  should  attack  it,  will  be  disapointed. 
If  it  should  unfortunately  happen  that  the  Soldiers  from 
this  place  should  arrive  too  late  for  the  Assistance  of  the 
Garrison,  which  I  hope  will  not  be  the  case ;   it  may  be  im- 

1  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  s,  900,  94. 
131 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

puted  to  the  Delay,  which  I  suppose  Captn  Jelfe's  picking 
up  two  Prizes  in  his  passage  to  this  place  with  the  Packets 
from  your  Grace's  Office  containing  the  Declarations  of  Warr 
might  occasion  to  his  arrival  here,  and  give  the  Enemy  at 
Louisbourg  the  greater  start  of  us.  But  the  succour  already 
sent  will  have  been  obtain'd  from  the  Assembly,  rais'd, 
transported  and  landed  at  Annapolis  within  less  than  six 
weeks  after  Captn  Jelfe's  arrival  here,  and  my  Dispatch 
in  raising  and  transporting  the  Remainder  of  the  Soldiers 
design'd  for  that  place  shall  not  be  in  the  least  slacken'd. 

Three  days  ago  arriv'd  here  from  Louisbourg  a  Flag  of 
Truce  with  some  of  the  Wives  and  Children  of  the  Soldiers 
taken  at  Canso  and  five  Men-prisoners  sent  chiefly  for  the 
sake  of  Piloting  and  Navigating  the  Vessell,  and  yesterday 
arriv'd  here  from  the  same  place  a  Schooner  (which  set  out 
in  Company  with  the  Flag  of  Truce)  with  Major  Aldridge's 
Wife  and  family,  and  fourteen  lame  incurable  Soldiers  of 
the  Canso  Companies  sent  by  the  Governour  of  Louisbourg 
under  the  care  of  Lieutent  Bradstreet  belonging  to  one  of  the 
same  Companies,  who  deliver'd  me  a  Letter  from  Mr  Du- 
quesnel  the  Governour  of  Louisbourg  concerning  the  Ex- 
change of  Prisoners. 

As  this  Letter  contains  terms  of  Indignity  to  his  Majesty, 
which  are  Copy'd  from  the  French  King's  Declaration  of 
Warr,  I  hold  it  my  Duty  to  transmit  your  Grace  a  Copy  of 
it  and  of  the  Answer  which  I  shall  send  to  it,  and  of  my 
Proceedings  upon  it,  by  the  next  Ship  ;  and  in  the  meantime 
inclose  to  your  Grace  a  Copy  of  the  Capitulation  made  by 
the  Garrison  at  Canso,  which  was  deliver'd  to  me  by  the 
Captain  of  the  French  Flag  of  Truce :  The  Preservation  of 
Canso,  besides  the  necessity  of  it  for  carrying  on  the  New 
England  Fishery,  would  be  of  great  service  to  his  Majesty 
as  a  most  convenient  harbour  for  any  Ship  that  should  be 
Station'd  thereabouts  to  intercept  all  Trade  and  Provisions 
coming  into  Louisbourg,  which  would  in  a  short  time  in- 
evitably reduce  that  place  to  great  Distress. 

By  the  two  Inclos'd  Acts,  now  transmitted  to  your  Grace 
for  his  Majesty's   Royal  Approbation,  your  Grace  will  see 

132 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

what  Incouragement  I  have  induced  the  Assembly  to  give 
to  Privateer  Cruizers  against  the  French  :  And  under  what 
a  severe  Penalty  I  have  prevail'd  on  them  to  prohibit  all 
Correspondence  with  the  Enemy,  and  the  Exportation  of 
Provisions  as  well  as  warlike  Stores  to  the  French  Colonies, 
which  if  duely  observed,  and  the  same  precaution  was  us'd 
by  the  rest  of  his  Majesty's  Colonies,  would  very  much 
distress  the  people  of  Louisbourg  and  Martinique  in  par- 
ticular, where  tho  they  have  at  present  a  plenty  of  Bread 
and  Fish,  yet  they  are  in  great  want  of  all  other  Provisions 
(as  we  learn  here  from  authentick  accounts)  and  will  soon 
be  in  great  distress  for  want  of  Bread  from  the  Numbers 
which  resort  to  them  from  parts  adjacent. 

By  a  Master  of  a  Vessell  now  here,  who  was  taken  by  the 
French  Packet-boat  that  carry'd  the  French  King's  Decla- 
ration of  Warr  to  Louisbourg,  I  learn  that  the  Declaration 
arriv'd  at  Louisbourg  the  5th  of  May  O.  S.  and  that  the  day 
following  the  Expedition  begun  to  be  fitted  out  against 
Canso ;  and  that  the  French  packet-boat  brought  Stores 
on  Board  of  her  for  one  of  the  two  French  Men  of  Warr 
said  to  be  building  at  Canada. 

About  a  fortnight  ago  the  Province  Snow  took  and  brought 

into  this   Harbour  one  of  the   two   arm'd   Vessells,   which 

was  employ'd  in  taking  Canso :    She  is  a  Sloop,  had  ninety 

four  Men  on  board  including  Officers,  eight  Carriage  Guns 

and  proportionable  swivels  and  small  arms,  and  was  cruizing 

in  this  Bay,  but  had  not  taken  any  thing  since  she  had 

been  out :   And  I   have   now  in  this   place  One   hundred  & 

Twenty  French  Prisoners  in  the  whole. 

I  am  with  the  most  Dutifull  Regards 

My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Obedient  &  most 

Devoted  Humble  Servant 

\\T     Stttrt  K*Y" 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed : 

Boston.     July  7,  1744 

Govr  Shirley 

5  Augt  15th  ^^^ 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   LORDS   OF 
TRADE 1 

(Duplicate) 

Boston,  July  25th,  1744. 
My  Lords, 

A.  In  my  last  which  I  had  the  honour  to  write  to  your 
Lordships  I  express'd  my  apprehensions  of  some  Attacks  being 
suddenly  made  upon  the  Garrison  of  Annapolis  Royal,  and 
that  a  few  days  before  I  had  for  that  Reason  dispatch'd  away 
all  the  soldiers  I  had  then  raised  here  (being  upwards  of 
seventy)  under  Convoy  of  the  Province  Galley  for  the  Rein- 
forcement of  it.  That  succour  arriv'd  at  Annapolis  the  4th 
Instant,  and  found  the  Garrison  besieg'd  by  a  Body  of 
Indians  with  a  French  Priest  &  Officer  at  their  head,  for 
the  Particulars  whereof,  and  the  present  situation  of  the 
Garrison  I  beg  leave  to  referr  your  Lordships  to  Mr  Mas- 
carene  the  present  Comander  in  Chief's  own  account  of  it 
contain'd  in  two  Letters  to  me,  as  also  to  Mr  Bastide  the 
Engineer's  Letters,  Extracts  of  which  I  enclose,  and  shall 
only  mention  here  what  the  Captain  of  the  province  Galley 
further  Inform'd  me  vizt.  that  the  Indians  had  upon  their 
first  approach  demanded  of  Mr  Mascarene  to  surrender  the 
Garrison ;  that  they  had  almost  kill'd  all  the  Cattle  that 
belong'd  to  the  English,  &  that  the  Indians  upon  the  first 
Appearance  of  the  Galley  &  Transport  Vessel  under  it's 
Convoy,  tho  wearing  English  Colours,  were  so  confident  of 
their  being  French  &  bringing  'em  an  expected  assistance 
that  they  were  coming  towards  the  Shoar  in  order  to  meet 
the  Soldiers  at  their  Landing ;  but  upon  discovering  their 
Mistake  betook  themselves  to  precipitate  Flight.  I  have 
also  to  Inform  your  Lordships  that  five  days  ago  I  sent 
under  Convoy  to  the  Garrison  another  Company  of  Soldiers 
consisting  of  Fifty  three.  Nine  of  which  belonged  to  the 
Companies  taken  at  Canso,  &  I  had  got  cur'd  of  their  in- 
dispositions so  as  to  be  very  fit  in  the  Opinion  of  two  of 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  884,  447.  A  note  on  the  manuscript  states 
that  the  original  letter  was  never  received  at  the  home  office. 

134 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

their  Officers  for  Garrison  Duty;  and  that  I  depend  upon 
sending  to  Annapolis  in  a  few  days  Seventy  more  Soldiers 
raised  here,  which  will  consist  chiefly  of  pick'd  Indians  and 
other  men  fit  for  ranging  the  woods  under  a  very  expert 
Officer  for  that  Service,  who  has  undertaken  (and  upon  a 
probable  scheme  as  it  appears  to  me)  to  destroy  and  drive 
off  all  the  Indians  which  have  infested  the  Government  of 
Annapolis,  and  are  what  are  properly  call'd  the  Cape  Sable 
Indians,  this  next  winter;  for  his  Encouragement  to  do 
which,  I  have  promis'd  him,  if  he  accomplishes  the  Service, 
to  represent  it  to  his  Majesty.  And  upon  the  whole  I  have 
reason  to  hope  that  with  the  Assistance,  which  the  Garrison 
will  have  receiv'd  from  hence  they  may  be  able  to  Defend 
themselves  for  the  present  from  any  Attempt,  which  may  be 
made  against  them,  if  no  large  Ships  of  Warr  should  attack 
'em,  even  tho  the  French  should  send  a  Detachment  of  their 
Troops  from  Louisbourg,  which  it  is  not  improbable  may  be 
their  design,  when  the  season  of  the  year  for  an  Expedition 
against  Cape  Breton  shall  be  over ;  or  tho  the  Cape  Sable 
Indians  should  be  reinforc'd  with  other  Tribes,  and  make  a 
strong  push  against  the  Garrison  (as  it  is  possible  they  may 
if  not  deterr'd  from  it  by  our  own  Indians  and  rangers)  in 
the  time  of  the  deep  Snows,  which  is  a  Season  of  the  greatest 
Danger  from  them,  the  Trenches  being  then  frequently  fiU'd 
and  Leveird  with  the  Ramparts  by  the  sudden  Snows  ;  and  I 
am  the  rather  induc'd  to  hope  the  Garrison  may  be  in  a  Ca- 
pacity to  defend  itself  as  the  early  notice  I  gave  'em  of  a 
rupture  with  France  made  Mr  Bastide  instantly  Desist  from 
carrying  on  the  New  Works,  &  gave  him  near  a  month's 
more  Time  to  put  the  old  ones  into  the  best  repair  they  are 
capable  of;  and  the  Succours  I  then  promis'd  the  Garrison 
kept  the  French  Inhabitants  in  a  proper  respect  and  Awe, 
and  procur'd  the  best  Assistance,  they  could  give  the  Gar- 
rison in  carrying  on  the  repairs  ;  which  might  have  happen'd 
otherwise,  had  they  not  receiv'd  such  a  Visit  and  promise 
of  Assistance  from  hence. 

B.     I  am  also  to  enclose  to  your  Lordships  a  Copy  of 
Mons.  Duquesnel's  Letter  to  me,  concerning  the  Exchange 

135 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  Prisoners  mention'd  in  my  last  with  a  Copy  of  my  answer 
to  and  proceedings  upon  it ;  also  of  the  Applications  of  the 
English  Officers,  prisoners  for  a  year  from  the  13th  of  last 
May  at  Louisbourg  for  a  supply  of  provisions  from  hence 
for  the  Subsistence  of  themselves  and  their  Families,  and 
likewise  of  the  Soldiers  of  the  late  Garrison  at  Canso  pris- 
oners also  for  the  same  Term  :  And  would  inform  your 
Lordships  that  as  to  the  Soldiers  I  have  wholly  refus'd  send- 
ing 'em  any  Supply,  esteeming  it  an  unprecedented  and 
dangerous  thing  to  supply  'em  with  provisions  in  the  Enemy's 
Country  where  there  is  a  scarcity  of  Provisions  for  the  sup- 
port of  the  Inhabitants  &  what  would  probably  prevent 
their  being  releas'd  before  the  Term  of  their  Capitulation 
was  expir'd,  and  as  to  the  Officers  who  live  at  Louisbourg 
at  their  own  Expence,  I  have  reduc'd  their  Demands  to  so 
small  a  Quantity  that  if  the  Enemy  should  upon  it's  Arrival 
at  Louisbourg  be  so  dishonourable  as  to  make  Use  of  it,  the 
support  it  would  afford  them  would  be  altogether  incon- 
siderable, as  may  appear  from  the  inclosed  Schedule  of  what 
I  allow'd  Mr  Bradstreet  upon  the  Advice  of  his  Majesty's 
Council  to  take  with  him. 

Upon  this  unforeseen  release  of  the  English  prisoners  by 
Mr.  Duquesnel,  and  his  proposal  to  me  for  an  Exchange  I 
have  inquired  after  precedents  of  the  proceedings  of  other 
Governours  of  his  Majesty's  Colonies  upon  like  Occasions, 
and  as  I  found  Instances  of  Exchanges  of  prisoners  of  Warr 
made  by  'em  without  any  footsteps  of  particular  Instruc- 
tions from  his  Majesty  for  that  purpose,  it  appear'd  to  me 
that  they  made  the  Exchanges  &  settled  Cartells  by  virtue 
of  their  General  Commissions,  and  I  have  accordingly  acted 
upon  this  Occasion,  as  appear'd  to  me  best  for  his  Majesty's 
Service,  and  the  Good  of  his  Subjects  belonging  to  this  prov- 
ince, many  of  whom  (Fishermen  especially)  are  now  Pris- 
oners at  Louisbourg ;  and  I  was  more  especially  determin'd 
to  act  in  this  manner  as  I  was  willing  (if  possible)  to  procure 
the  immediate  discharge  of  the  Officers  and  Soldiers  now  at 
Louisbourg  for  His  Majesty's  Service  at  Annapolis  Royal  in 
this  dangerous  Conjuncture  for  the  Garrison.   .   .   . 

136 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

C.  As  to  Mr.  Duquesnel's  proposal  to  me  concerning  a 
Neutrality  with  respect  to  the  New  England  &  Cape  Breton 
Fisheries  ...  I  am  not  surpriz'd  to  find  that  the  French 
sho'd  have  so  much  at  heart  the  preservation  of  their 
Fishery  (which  they  apprehend  it  is  in  his  Majesty's 
Power  to  resume)  since  the  Growth  of  the  Cape  Breton 
Fishery,  and  the  Decay  of  the  New  England  Fishery  would 
be  attended  with  the  most  Valuable  Consequences  to  the 
French  Commerce  and  Naval  Strength  on  the  one  hand, 
and  with  the  contrary  Effects  to  his  Majesty's  subjects  in 
New  England  and  the  Trade  of  Great  Britain  to  those 
parts  on  the  other. 

D.  And  I  would  beg  leave  further  to  inform  your  Lord- 
ships that  the  late  surprize  of  Canso  will  not  only  give  the 
French  the  Advantage  of  the  Sole  Fishery  there,  but  has 
also  open'd  a  free  Communication  between  Loulsbourg 
c^nd  the  Inhabitants  of  Menies  and  Schenecta,  which  Tract 
is  not  only  the  Granary  of  those  Parts  but  abounds  with 
plenty  of  live  Stock,  from  whence  the  French  at  Louis- 
bourg  have  already  receiv'd  Seasonable  Supplies  of  Fresh 
Provisions,  not  to  mention  that  they  thereby  have  freed 
themselves  from  the  Annoyance,  which  any  British  Ships 
station'd  there  might  give  to  the  Trade  and  Privateers  of 
that  Port  during  the  Warr. 

I  am  with  the  highest  Regard, 
My  Lords, 

Your  most  Humble  and 

most  Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
To  the  Rt  Honble  the  Lords  Commrs  of  Trade  &c. 

Endorsed : 

Massachusetts 
Letter  from  Mr  Shirley,  Govr  of  the  Massachusets  Bay, 
to  the  Board,  dated  at  Boston  ye  25th  of  July  1744. 

Reed  Novbr  the  27th  1 
Read  Ditto  28th  J  ^^44 

137 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   LORDS   OF 
TRADE! 

Boston,  New  England,  Augt.  lo,  1744. 
My  Lords, 

The  Account  which  in  my  last  to  your  Lordships  I  gave 
of  the  Condition  and  Circumstances  of  his  Majesty's  Gar- 
rison at  Annapolis  Royal,  and  of  the  Succours  sent  and 
preparing  to  be  sent  to  it  from  hence,  and  of  my  pro- 
ceedings in  the  Exchange  of  Prisoners  with  Mr.  Duquesnel 
the  Governour  of  Louisbourg,  and  upon  the  Application  to 
me  from  the  Officers  of  his  Majesty's  Troops  lately  taken 
at  Canso  by  the  French  in  behalf  of  themselves  &  the  sol- 
diers now  Prisoners  at  Louisbourg  for  provisions  from  hence, 
has  hitherto  hindered  me  from  Transmitting  to  your  Lord- 
ships an  Account  of  what  I  have  done  within  this  Province 
for  the  defence  and  Protection  of  it,  since  the  Rupture  with 
France ;  Concerning  which  I  have  to  inform  your  Lord- 
ships that  Instantly  after  my  receipt  of  the  Duke  of  New- 
castle's Letter  inclosing  his  Majesty's  &  the  French  King's 
Declarations  of  War  on  Saturday  noon  the  2d  of  June  last 
the  Assembly  being  then  Setting,  500  Men  were  Voted  to  be 
raised  for  the  protection  of  the  Frontiers,  besides  an  Aug- 
mentation of  all  the  Garrisons ;  and  the  day  following  I 
issued  Impress  Warrants  out  to  the  Colonels  of  the  several 
Regiments  for  raising  and  posting  the  men,  which  was  ac- 
cordingly done  within  three  or  four  days,  and  within  a 
few  days  afterwards  these  Soldiers  were  reinforced  with  a 
second  supply  of  Five  hundred  Men  more. 

These  proceedings,  together  with  the  Erecting  of  the  Line 
of  Block-houses  and  raising  of  ten  Companies  of  Snowshoe 
men  consisting  of  Five  hundred  men  more  mentioned  to 
your  Lordships  in  a  former  Letter,  and  the  Treaty  I  had  with 
these  Tribes  two  years  ago,  have  had  the  Effect  not  only  to 
keep  the  Bordering  Indians,  who  upon  other  Occasions  of  a 
French  Warr  ever  broke  out  into  sudden  Hostilities  upon 

ip.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  884,  361. 
138 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

our  Settlements  before,  quiet;  But  has  produced  the  most 
strong  Professions  of  Peace  from  'em  and  made  'em  really 
SoUicitous  to  prevent  a  Rupture  with  us  at  present ;  And 
this  has  very  much  encourag'd  our  people  upon  the  Ex- 
posed part  of  our  Frontiers  to  stand  their  Ground,  &  saved 
some  young  Settlements,  where  the  Inhabitants  had  begun 
to  draw  off  their  Families  Cattle  &  Effects,  from  being  In- 
tirely  broke  up.  What  has  further  contributed  towards 
keeping  the  Neighbouring  Tribes  of  Indians  in  peace  is  a 
Treaty  of  Friendship,  which  I  have  lately  renew'd  between 
the  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations  commonly  called  the  Mo- 
hawk Indians  near  Albany,  two  of  whose  Sagamores  or  Chief 
Captains  delegated  by  all  the  Tribes  I  have  Prevail'd  with 
to  carry  a  Belt  of  Wampum  (the  Instrument  of  a  Covenant 
or  Treaty  between  Indian  Nations)  to  the  several  above- 
mentioned  Eastern  Tribes  on  our  Frontiers,  and  to  Insist 
upon  their  Observing  a  strict  Neutrality  between  the  French 
and  English,  letting  'em  know  that  by  the  Terms  of  their 
Alliance  with  us  the  Albany  Mohawks  would  be  obliged, 
if  the  Eastern  Indians  broke  the  peace  with  us,  to  take  part 
in  our  Quarrel,  which  the  Mohawk  Delegates,  accompanied 
with  some  Gentlemen  from  this  Government  very  faith- 
fully did,  and  has  struck  no  small  Terror  into  the  Eastern 
Tribes  who  have  also  promised  to  lay  their  Commands  (to 
use  their  own  Expression)  on  the  Cape  Sable  &  St  John's  In- 
dians, who  lately  besieged  his  Majesty's  Garrison  at  Annapolis 
Royal,  to  desist  from  all  further  Hostilities ;  and  this  day 
arrived  a  Chief  Sagamore  &  Counsellor,  from  the  Cagna- 
wagha  Indians  near  Canada,  commonly  called  the  French 
Mohawks,  with  a  Belt  of  Wampum  from  his  Tribes  for  the 
Government  of  this  Province,  in  order  to  assure  the  Govern- 
ment that  the  Cagnawagha  Indians  had  made  an  Agree- 
ment with  the  Six  Nations  to  observe  an  exact  Neu- 
trality between  the  French  &  English,  and  had  declared 
to  the  Governour  of  Canada,  that  they  would  not  take 
up  the  Hatchet  on  the  side  of  the  French  as  Formerly, 
and  to  make  a  Treaty  of  Peace  with  this  Government. 
The  chief  part  also  of  one  of  the  Eastern  Tribes  of  Indians 
i^  139 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

called  the  Pigwaketts  have  lately  put  themselves  &  their 
Wives  and  Children  under  his  Majesty's  Protection  within 
this  Government :  the  men  offering  themselves  to  be  Em- 
ploy'd  In  his  Majesty's  Service,  and  two  of  them  in  par- 
ticular desiring  to  go  into  his  Service  at  Annapolis  Royal, 
an  Instance  hitherto  unknown  in  New  England  since  the 
French  have  practised  upon  the  Indians ;  and  which  may 
be  attributed  to  my  before  mentioned  Interview  with  'em 
in  the  Eastern  Parts,  two  of  these  Indians  having  been  then 
among  the  Indian  Councellors  who  treated  with  me  on  be- 
half of  all  the  Eastern  Tribes. 

These  Events  seem  to  afford  a  fair  Prospect  of  a  Neu- 
trality among  all  the  Indians,  which  is  a  new  thing  here  in 
time  of  a  French  Warr,  and  will  at  least  be  a  very  great 
dis-appolntment  to  the  French,  who,  I  am  well  assured  from 
Louisbourg,  had  a  great  dependance  upon  Engaging  all  the 
Indians  even  the  Albany  Mohawks,  in  the  present  Warr  on 
their  side,  as  appears  also  by  Letters  from  the  Governour 
of  Louisbourg  to  the  Eastern  Indians  for  that  purpose,  of 
which  I  have  had  an  Account,  and  the  Solllcitatlons  used 
by  the  Governour  of  Canada  to  make  the  Indians  take  up 
the  Hatchet,  In  Obtaining  which  has  hitherto  consisted 
chiefly  their  Power  to  harrass  &  distress  the  Governments  of 
New  England.  But  I  must  at  the  same  time  observe  to 
your  Lordships  that  I  don't  flatter  myself  with  much  de- 
pendance upon  the  Present  Disposition  of  the  Eastern 
Indians,  who  are  many  ways  liable  to  be  drawn  into  a  Rup- 
ture with  us  by  the  artifices  of  the  French,  their  own  Weak- 
ness &  the  Influence  which  the  French  Missionary  Priests 
have  over  them ;  But  nothing  shall  be  wanting  on  my 
Part  to  Cultivate  a  peaceable  disposition  in  'em. 

I  must  here  beg  leave  to  trouble  your  Lordships  with  my  re- 
peated request  for  his  Majesty's  Permission  to  Consent  to  a 
supply  of  the  Treasury  with  such  Sums  in  Bills  of  Credit  as 
the  necessary  support  of  his  Government,  the  defence  of  his 
Subjects  within  this  Province,  and  the  Exigencies  of  his 
Service  In  other  respects  will  unavoidably  demand  during 
the  continuance  of  the  Warr  with  France,  and  which  will 

140 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

greatly  exceed  the  sum  limited  by  his  12th  Instruction  to 
me  for  that  purpose ;  as  without  exceeding  it,  his  Service 
must  suffer  in  every  respect,  and  the  People,  who  cannot 
possibly  otherwise  supply  the  Treasury  at  present,  must 
be  laid  under  unsurmountable  Difficulties,  &  be  thrown  into 
Confusion ;  And  these  Inconveniences  will  ensue  without 
answering  any  other  Purpose,  that  I  can  think  of,  which 
ought  to  have  weight  when  put  into  Competition  with  them, 
for  the  particulars  of  which  I  beg  leave  to  referr  your  Lord- 
ships to  my  last  Letter  upon  that  Subject;  I  have  been  obliged 
to  consent  to  a  partial  supply  only  for  this  year,  in  order 
to  keep  within  the  £30,000  limited  by  the  Royal  Instruc- 
tions, in  hopes  of  obtaining  by  November  next  a  permission 
from  his  Majesty,  to  exceed  it  in  such  manner  as  his  Service 
may  necessarily  require,  &  should  esteem  it  a  singular  Act 
of  Favour  in  your  Lordships,  if  I  might  receive  by  that 
time  some  directions  for  my  Conduct  under  the  Dilemma, 
which  I  shall  then  find  myself  under,  of  either  using  a  dis- 
cretionary Latitude  in  Acting  upon  the  Twelfth  Instruc- 
tion by  Exceeding  the  Sum  of  Paper  Money  there  limited, 
or  wholly  refusing  to  supply  the  Treasury,  for  the  Sup- 
port of  the  Government  &  every  other  Service,  in  the  only 
way  by  which  it  can  be  provided  for  at  present. 
I  am  with  the  most  perfect  Respect, 
My  Lords, 

Your  most  Humble,   and 
most  Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Rt  Honble  Lords  Commrs  of  Trade  &c. 
Endorsed : 

Massachusets 
Letter  from  Mr.  Shirley,  Govr  of  the  Massachusets  Bay 
to  the  Board,  dated  at  Boston  August  the  loth  1744,  giving 
acct  of  what  he  has  done  for  the  Defence  of  the  Province, 
Exchange  of  Prisoners  &  Peace  with  the  Indians,  and  desires 
an  Enlargemt  of  his  Instruction  about  issuing  Paper  Money. 
Reed  Octobr  3istl 
Read  Novbr  8      J  ^^44 
141 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ROYAL  ORDER  APPROVING   CONDUCT  OF 
WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  1 

At  the  Court  at  Kensington, 
the  6th  day  of  September  1744. 
Present 
The  Kings  most  Excellent  Majesty. 
Lord  President  Lord  Delawar 

Lord  Privy  Seal  Mr.  Speaker 

Earl  of  Winchelsea  Mr.  Vice  Chamberlain 

Lord  Carteret. 

Upon  reading  at  the  Board  a  Report  from  the  Right  Hon- 
ourable the  Lords  of  the  Committee  of  Council  for  Plantation 
Affairs  dated  the  29th  of  last  Month  in  the  words  following 
Vizt. 

Your  Majesty  having  been  pleased  to  referr  unto  this 
Committee  a  Letter  from  William  Shirley  Esqr.  your 
Majesty's  Governour  of  the  Province  of  the  Massachusetts 
Bay  to  his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  dated  the  25th  of  June  ^ 
last,  representing  the  several  Steps  he  hath  taken,  and  the 
endeavours  he  hath  used  towards  raising  within  that  Prov- 
ince a  Body  of  Forces  for  the  Assistance  of  Annapolis  Royal 
in  your  Majesty  Province  of  Nova  Scotia,  and  that  he  hath 
prevailed  with  the  Assembly  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay 
not  only  to  consent  to  the  raising  of  three  Companys  of 
Sixty  Men  each  exclusive  of  Officers  but  as  an  encourage- 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  33026,  3.  A  transcript  is  in  the 
Library  of  Congress. 

2  On  Aug.  6  Shirley  had  sent  to  Newcastle  and  on  Aug.  10  to  the 
Lords  of  Trade  an  account  of  what  he  had  done  for  the  protec- 
tion of  the  province,  the  treaty  of  friendship  made  with  the  In- 
dians and  financial  measures  taken  (P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  884,  361 ; 
C.  O.  5,  900,  no).  This  order  passes  on  Shirley's  acts  up  to 
an  earlier  date.  The  editor  has  found  no  trace  of  any  letter  of 
June  25  as  mentioned,  but  two  letters  of  July  25,  one  to  Newcastle 
(C.  O.  5,  900,  97),  the  other  to  the  Lords  of  Trade  (C.  O.  5,  884, 
447),  seem  to  him  to  be  the  manuscripts  mentioned  as  those  upon 
which  this  order  is  based. 

142 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ment  for  the  speedy  raising  of  the  same  to  give  a  bounty  of 
near  Four  Guineas  to  each  Man  as  Ukewise  to  Victual  them 
for  three  Months  and  to  be  at  the  further  Expence  of  Trans- 
porting them  to  AnnapoUs  Royal ;  But  that  with  regard 
to  the  pay  of  the  said  Forces,  the  Governour  represents 
That  he  stands  engaged  for  your  Majesty's  Providing  for  the 
same,  as  also,  that  they  shall  be  Discharged  upon  the  ar- 
rival of  a  reinforcement  from  Great  Britain,  which  he  hopes 
your  Majesty  will  be  pleased  to  approve  of,  as  he  could  not 
otherwise  have  obtained  the  said  succour. 

The  Lords  of  the  Committee  have  in  Obedience  to  your 
Majesty's  Commands,  taken  the  said  Letter,  as  also  several 
other  papers  relating  to  this  affair,  into  their  consideration. 
And  Do  agree  humbly  to  Report  to  your  Majesty  as  their 
opinion.  That  your  Majesty's  said  Governour  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts' Bay  hath  acted  as  became  a  DutifuU  and  Zealous 
Servant  to  your  Majesty  in  obtaining  the  aforementioned 
Succours  for  the  assistance  of  your  Majesty's  other  Prov- 
ince of  Nova  Scotia  and  that  therefore  It  may  be  advice- 
able  for  your  Majesty  not  only  to  enable  him  to  make  good 
the  engagement  he  hath  entred  into  for  the  pay  of  the  said 
forces  but  also  to  Signify  your  Royal  approbation  of  his 
conduct  in  this  affair  and  in  order  to  Your  Majesty's  being 
informed  of  the  time  when  the  pay  of  the  said  forces  is  to 
commence  the  committee  begg  leave  to  propose  that  the 
sd  Governour  should  be  directed  to  Transmit  forthwith  an 
exact  account  thereof  to  your  Majesty  in  Council. 

His  Majesty  in  Council  this  day  took  the  said  Report  into 
Consideration  and  being  well  pleased  with  the  dutifuU 
and  Zealous  behaviour  of  William  Shirley  Esqr.  His  Gov- 
ernour of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  in  obtaining  the  afore- 
mentioned Succours  for  His  Province  of  Nova  Scotia,  Doth 
therefore  hereby  signifye  His  Royal  approbation  of  the  said 
Governour's  conduct  therein  And  his  Majesty  is  likewise 
pleased  to  Declare  that  He  will  make  good  the  Engagement 
entred  into  by  the  said  Governour  for  the  pay  of  the  Suc- 
cours, and  to  that  end  the  said  Governour  is  to  transmit  to 

143 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

His  Majesty  at  this  Board  an  exact   account  of  the  time 

when  their  pay  is  to  Commence.^ 

Endorsed: 

Kings  Order  in  Council 

approving  of  Governour 
Shirley's  Conduct. 

ROYAL   INSTRUCTIONS    TO   WILLIAM 
SHIRLEY  2 

Instruction  to  our  Trusty  and  Wellbeloved 
William  Shirley,  Esqr.  Our  Captain  General  and 
Governor  in  Chief  in  and  over  Our  Province 
and  Territory  of  the  Massachusets  Bay,  in 
New  England,  in  America.  Given  at  Our 
Court  at  Kensington  the  9th  Day  of  September 
1744,  in  the  Eighteenth  Year  of  Our  Reign. 

Whereas  by  the  12th  Article  of  Our  Instructions  You  are 
restrained  from  consenting  to  the  Emission  of  more  than 
Thirty  Thousand  Pounds  of  Bills  of  Credit,  at  one  and  the 
same  time,  without  inserting  a  suspending  Clause  in  the 
Acts  for  that  Purpose,  to  prevent  their  taking  Effect,  untill 
Our  Pleasure  shall  be  known,  And  Whereas  It  has  been  rep- 
resented to  Us,  that  the  said  Sum  of  Thirty  Thousand 
Pounds  may  not  be  sufficient  during  the  Time  of  War  for 
the  Defence  and  necessary  Support  of  Our  Government; 
And  forasmuch  as  many  unforeseen  Accidents  may  arise 
which  may  demand  an  immediate  Supply,  It  is  therefore 
Our  Will  and  Pleasure  for  the  present  to  dispense  with  our 

^  Upon  the  news  of  this  Order  in  Council  reaching  Boston  the 
Massachusetts  House  of  Representatives  on  Oct.  13  passed  resolu- 
tions acknowledging  Governor  Shirley's  attention  to  the  protection 
of  the  province  and  his  good  use  of  the  provincial  troops  in  Nova 
Scotia.     Mass.  Arch. 

2  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  200,  49.     A  transcript  is  in  the  Library  of 

Congress.     See  also  Instructions  of  Aug.  9  allowing  Shirley  to  give 

his  consent  to  acts  for  the  supply  of  the  treasury  during  the  war, 

C.  O.  5,  918,  136.     For  original  instruction  see  ante,  p.  47,  §  12. 

144 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

said  1 2th  Instruction,  and  We  do  hereby  allow  you  in  case 
of  Emergencys  to  give  your  Consent  to  such  Acts  as  may 
be  necessary  for  the  Supply  of  the  Treasury  of  Our  said 
Province  with  Bills  of  publick  Credit  during  the  Continu- 
ance of  the  present  War,  provided  the  Money  thereby 
raised  be  appropriated  to  the  necessary  Support  and  De- 
fence of  Our  said  province  only. 
Endorsed: 

Instructions  to  William  Shirley  Esqr., 
Governor  of  the  Massachusets  Bay. 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY  TO   THE    DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

_  Boston,  N.  England,  September  22.,  1744. 

My  Lord  Duke, 

I  have  given  the  inclos'd  papers  all  Possible  Dispatch  to 
your  Grace  on  Account  of  the  Intelligence  contaln'd  in  four 
of  them,  the  substance  of  which  has  been  confirm'd  to  me 
by  all  the  Officers  of  his  Majesty's  Troops  lately  taken  at 
Canso,  who  arrived  here  yesterday  with  other  prisoners 
of  War  to  the  Amount  of  340  from  Louisbourg  in  three  Flaggs 
of  Truce ;  and  from  whom  I  learn  that  it  is  likely  that  the 
India  Merchant  Ships  mentioned  in  the  Inclosed  Papers 
will  not  sett  out  till  late  in  October  or  the  Middle  of  Novem- 
ber, so  that  if  the  Vessell  by  which  this  goes  should  have  a 
quick  Passage,  it  is  possible  that  these  Ships  whose  Value 
is  reported  here  to  be  exceeding  great,  may  be  intercepted 
by  Some  of  his  Majesty's  Ships,  if  it  shou'd  be  thought 
proper  to  send  some  of  them  out  for  that  purpose  upon 
the  Arrival  of  this  Intelligence.  I  have  also  sent  Commo- 
dore Warren  the  Account  of  the  French  India  Ships,  but 
much  doubt  whether  he  can  draw  together  a  sufficient 
Force  from  these  parts  to  Cope  with  the  French  Men  of  Warr 
and  Merchant-Men^  being  all  ships  of  considerable  Force. 

ip.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  117. 

^  See   Shirley  to   Governor  William   Greene   of   Rhode   Island 
(Kimball,  Corres.  Col.  Govs,  of  R.  L  i,  271),  with  depositions  of 
VOL.  I  —  L  14s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Upon  the  First  account  I  had  of  the  Arrival  of  these  Ships 
of  Warr  at  Louisbourg  I  was  in  some  pain  for  Annapolis 
Royal,  but  find  the  Canso  Officers  are  of  Opinion  that  nothing 
is  design'd  against  it  at  present  by  those  Ships ;  but  am 
Inform'd  by  'em  that  an  Embarkation  had  been  before 
made  &  two  Bombs  actually  put  on  board  a  Vessell  to  Attack 
that  Place,  and  that  the  design  was  lay'd  aside  upon  Ad- 
vice which  the  Captain  of  the  First  French  Flagg  of  Truce, 
who  came  to  Boston,  Carry'd  from  hence,  that  Commodore 
Warren  was  to  be  joined  here  by  a  Number  of  his  Majesty's 
Ships  and  a  Bomb  Vessell  from  the  West  Indies  upon  some 
secret  Expedition,  supposed  to  be  design'd  against  Cape 
Breton  (a  Report  which  I  did  not  think  fit  to  discourage  at 
that  Juncture)  and  that  I  had  sent  a  very  considerable 
Reinforcement  of  men  from  hence  to  the  Garrison  at  Annapo- 
lis Royal  which  was  justly  founded  and  has  hitherto  had  its 
desired  Effect.  However  the  French  have  actually  pro- 
ceeded to  send  a  Detachment  of  60  soldiers  into  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Annapolis  Royal  to  be  Posted  in  some  small 
wooden  Forts  in  Accadie,  in  order  to  draw  the  Inhabitants 
from  their  sworn  allegiance  to  His  Majesty,  and  to  induce 
'em  to  take  up  Arms  against  the  Garrison,  which  Scheme 
they  Flatter  themselves  they  shall  be  able  to  Effect  this 
Winter,  unless  they  should  be  disturb'd  by  the  Appearance 
of  one  of  his  Majesty's  Ships  in  the  Harbour,  which  would 
give  Countenance  to  his  Majesty's  Garrison  and  keep  the 
Inhabitants  of  Accadie  in  a  proper  Awe  and  respect,  as  has 
been  repeated  to  me  in  every  Letter  from  the  Officers  of 
the  Garrison. 

I  find  also  the  English  Officers  think  it  is  likely  that  An- 
napolis Royal  will  be  attack'd  very  early  by  Sea  next  spring ; 
and  they  further  Inform  me  that  the  French  at  Louisbourg 
have  been  under  Apprehensions  all  this  year  of  a  Visit  from 
England  and  in  great  want  of  Provisions,  which  appears  to 
have  been  the  Case  also  of  their  Countrymen  at  Canada  by 

John  Richards,  John  Nealson,  and  Peter  Dejoncourt  as  to  French 
privateers  on  New  England  coast.  See  also  Shirley  to  Governor 
Jonathan  Law  of  Connecticut  (Conn.  Hist.  Society  Coll.  ii,  225). 

146 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

undoubted  Advice  from  thence  and  from  Old  France  from 
whence  Store  Ships  were  sent  in  May  and  June  last  to  sup- 
ply 'em  with  Flower  &ca.,  but  have  been  one  of  'em  at 
Least  intercepted  by  our  Privateers  as  have  been  three  or 
four  Provision  Ships  bound  for  Louisbourg.  It  is  I  sup- 
pose owing  to  this  Scarcity  of  Provisions  at  Louisbourg  and 
my  Refusal  to  supply  the  Canso  Troops  with  Provisions 
from  hence  during  their  Imprisonment  at  Louisbourg  and 
the  very  small  Quantity  which  I  allow'd  Ensign  Bradstreet 
Agent  for  the  Officers  to  carry  from  hence  for  their  Subsist- 
ence that  the  Governour  of  Cape  Breton  has  released  the 
English  Officers  and  Soldiers  from  their  Confinement  at 
Louisbourg  and  sent  'em  here,  tho  your  Grace  will  Per- 
ceive by  the  Inclos'd  Copy  of  the  new  Agreement  enter'd 
into  between  the  French  Governour  &  Captain  Heron  the 
late  Commandant  at  Canso,  whereby  Capt.  Heron  has  stip- 
ulated that  the  Officers  and  Soldiers  shall  not  bear  Arms 
against  the  French  King  or  his  Allies,  'till  the  1st  of  Sep- 
temr  1745  N  :  S  :  which  is  near  four  months  longer  than  the 
time  for  which  they  surrender'd  themselves  Prisoners  of 
War  at  Canso  by  their  Capitulation  there  (a  Copy  of  which  I 
inclosed  to  your  Grace  in  a  former  Letter)  that  they  are  not 
released  upon  the  Terms  of  my  Proposal  to  the  French  Gov- 
ernour (a  copy  of  which  I  also  inclosed  to  your  Grace  in  a 
former  letter)  which  was  made  with  a  View  of  rend'ring 
them  of  Immediate  Service  to  his  Majesty  in  his  Garrison 
at  Annapolis  Royal.  The  reason  of  this  new  Agreement 
on  the  part  of  Mr.  Heron  your  Grace  will  find  assigned  by 
himself  in  the  inclos'd  Copy  of  his  Letter  to  me,  whereby 
your  Grace  will  Perceive  that  all  the  Share  I  have  in  this 
new  affair,  is  to  find  a  proper  Place  in  Boston  for  the  Re- 
ception of  Soldiers  till  they  may  be  of  Service  to  his  Majesty, 
which  I  shall  do  in  Castle  William,  and  if  there  is  any  diffi- 
culty in  procuring  Credit  for  furnishing  the  Troops  with 
Provisions  Bedding  Cloaths,  and  other  Necessarys  till  his 
Majesty's  Pleasure  shall  be  known  concerning  the  further 
disposition  of  them,  I  shall  Endeavour  to  Assist  the  Officers 
in  that  Matter  and  in  the  mean  time  inclose  to  your  Grace 

147 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

my  answer  to  Monsieur  Duquesnel  the  French  Governour 
upon  the  head  of  this  new  Agreement  between  him  and 
Captain    Heron. 

I  would  also  observe  to  your  Grace  upon  these  several  in- 
formations concerning  the  French  East  India  ships  and  the 
time  of  their  departure  from  Louisbourg  which  I  send  in  the 
several  shapes  that  I  receiv'd  'em  in  that  they  may  speak  for 
themselves,  that  I  make  the  greatest  dependance  upon  that  of 
Mr.  Ryal  Lieutenant  of  his  Majesty's  Ship  Kinsale,  who 
was  left  at  Canso  by  Captain  Young  last  summer  to  Cruize 
between  that  Place  &  Cape  Breton  for  Preventing  the  Pro- 
vision Trade,  and  Ensign  Bradstreet  whom  I  esteem  the 
most  Competent  Judges  in  this  Affair. 

The  Privateers  fitted  out  from  this  Place  which  are  eight 
or  nine  besides  a  snow,  a  brigantine,  and  a  sloop  equipp'd  by 
this  Government  for  Guard  ships,  have  taken  in  the  whole 
upwards  of  40  Sail  of  French  Vessells  and  much  annoy'd  the 
Enemy's  Fishery,  some  of  whose  small  settlements  they  have 
broke  up  by  burning  their  Works  &  Houses  as  the  Enemy  did 
at  Canso,  which  kind  of  Hostility  there  I  Perceive  they  now 
think  wrong,  and  repent  of  setting  the  Example. 

If  I  can  prevail  upon  the  Assembly  to  Enable  me  to  dis- 
turb from  hence  the  French  detachment  in  their  new  Posts 
in  Accadie,  I  shall  not  fail  to  do  it,  and  I  shall  also  apprize 
the  Neighbouring  Governments  of  the  Enemy's  attempts 
there  in  hopes  of  their  joining  with  us. 

I  am  with  the  most  DutifuU  Respect 
My  Lord  Duke 

Your  Graces  most  Obedient  and 
most  Devoted  humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
I  hope  your  Grace  will  excuse  the  hurry  which  these  Dispatches 
are  made  in. 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 
Endorsed  : 

Boston.    Septr   226.    1744. 
Govr     Shirley. 
B  Novr  6. 

148 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH* 

:     Boston,  24th  September,  1744. 
Sir, 

There  are  two  Fellows  that  were  imprisoned  in  Salem 
Goal,  in  order  to  be  prosecuted  for  counterfeiting  Bills  of 
Credit,  who  have  broke  prison,  and  it  is  supposed  have 
escaped  into  the  Province  of  New  Hampshire,  their  Names 
are  Joseph  Boyce  and  John  Scias.  As  it  is  much  the  In- 
terest of  all  his  Majesty's  Governments  in  these  Parts 
[thjat  this  wicked  Practice  should  be  detected  and  the 
Authours  of  it  punished,  I  must  pray  your  Excellency  would 
give  Orders  that  Search  may  be  made  for  these  Fellows  in 
your  Government,  that  they  may  be  apprehended  and  de- 
livered up  to  Justice,  and  be  brought  to  their  Trial  for 
these  Facts  :  If  they  may  be  seized  in  your  Province  you 
will  please  to  order  that  they  may  be  conveyed  to  New- 
bury, and  delivered  to  the  Authority  there. 
I  am. 

Your  Excellency's  most  obedient 
humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley.^ 
His  Excellency  Benning  Wentworth  Esqr. 
Endorsed: 

Gov.   Wm.    Shirley 
1744. 

^  Massachusetts  Manuscripts,  Vol.  I,  Library  of  Congress. 

2  It  was  with  the  greatest  difficulty  that  counterfeiting  was  kept 
down,  but  Shirley  seems  to  have  given  the  same  aid  to  his  neigh- 
bors that  he  requests  in  this  letter.  Writing  to  Governor  Greene 
of  Rhode  Island  on  Sept.  i,  Secretary  Willard  in  behalf  of  the 
Massachusetts  Governor  informs  his  correspondent  of  the  dis- 
covery that  counterfeit  Rhode  Island  bills  are  being  made  in  the 
northern  government  and  requests  directions.  Corres.  Rhode 
Island  Govs,  i,  269. 


149 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY  TO   THE    LORDS   OF 
TRADE 1 

Boston,  N.  Engld,  October  i6th,  1744. 
My  Lords, 

Yesterday  I  fitted  out  an  Arm'd  Snow,  Brigantine  and 
Sloop,  Vessells  in  the  service  of  this  Government  with  orders 
to  proceed  to  Annapolis  Royall,  and  there  to  take  in  such  a 
Detachment  of  Soldiers  from  the  Garrison  to  join  'em,  as 
Collonel  Mascarene  can  spare  with  four  field  Carriages 
some  Cohorns,  and  a  Mortar  upon  a  small  Expedition 
against  the  party  of  French  Troops  which  I  mention'd  in 
my  last  to  your  Lordships,  were  to  winter  in  Menis  or 
Chignecto,  and  also  to  take  satisfaction  of  such  of  the  French 
Inhabitants  as  have  already  revolted  from  their  Allegiance 
and  join'd  the  French  Enemy,  by  destroying  and  burning 
their  Settlements  and  taking  them  prisoners,  and  to  take 
Hostages  from  among  those,  who  have  not  yet  revolted  to 
be  deliver'd  to  the  Garrison  as  Pledges  for  the  fidelity  of 
the  Country.  These  Vessels  wait  for  nothing  but  a  Wind, 
and  will  be  join'd  with  two  small  Tenders  in  the  Service  of 
the  Ordnance,  now  at  Annapolis  and  a  Schooner  that  is  to 
carry  provisions  there,  and  I  am  in  hopes  cannot  well  fail 
of  having  it's  desir'd  Effect;  unless  the  Garrison's  late 
Treaty  with  Monsieur  Duvivier  which  I  mention'd  in  my 
last  to  your  Lordships  and  their  condescending  to  agree  with 
him  upon  preliminaries  (tho  the  same  were  not  actually 
sign'd)  for  surrendring  upon  the  arrival  of  the  Armament 
from  Louisbourg,  which  I  likewise  mention'd  in  my  last, 
should  have  encourag'd  the  French  to  make  a  Trial  with  a 
Thirty  gun  ship,  and  one  or  two  small  arm'd  Vessells  which 
are,  I  am  inform'd,  now  at  Louisbourg  and  the  Garrison 
should  upon  the  sight  of  'em  be  prevail'd  on  to  surrender 
before  our  Vessells  arrive. 

I  have  also  to  inform  your  Lordships  that  with  the  unani- 

1  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  884,  491.  A  similar  letter  to  the  Duke  of 
Newcastle  is  in  C.  O.  5,  900,  129. 

150 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

mous  Advice  of  his  Majesty's  Council  for  this  Province  I 
shall  tomorrow  pubHsh  a  Declaration  of  War  against  the 
Cape  Sable  and  St.  John's  Indians,  who  have  joln'd  with 
the  French  In  assaulting  his  Majesty's  Garrison  at  Annapolis 
Royal  and  shall  propose  to  the  Assembly  to  give  a  Bounty 
of  Scalp-money  for  every  Indian  of  either  of  those  Tribes, 
that  shall  be  klll'd,  which  If  obtaln'd,  and  the  Garrison  should 
not  be  taken  by  a  Sea  Armament  from  Loulsbourg,  seems 
to  promise  a  good  Effect,  as  there  Is  now  at  Annapolis  a 
considerable  party  of  Indians,  under  the  command  of  a 
very  good  Officer  from  this  province  who  with  such  En- 
couragement would  in  all  probability  rid  the  Government 
of  Annapolis  Royal  of  the  Cape  Sable  Indians  at  least. 

I  have  just  now  recelv'd  a  Letter  from  your  Lordships  of 
the  9th  of  August  which  I  shall  answer  by  the  first  Oppor- 
tunity, and  have  the  honour  to  be  with  the  highest  respect, 
My  Lords, 

Your  most  Humble  and 
most  Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Rt  Honble  Lords  Commissioners  for  Trade 
Endorsed : 

Massachusets 
Letter  from  Mr.  Shirley,  Governr  of  the  Massachusets  Bay, 
to  the  Board,  dated  at  Boston,  the  i6th  of  October  1744. 
He  has  sent  some  Vessels  with  men  for  the  reduction  of  the 
French  Indians  In  Nova  Scotia  and  security  of  Annapolis 
RoyaL 

Reed  Novbr  27th 
Read  Ditto   28th 


1744 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH 


^  Boston,  Nov.   10,  1744. 

This  waits  upon  ybu  by  Capt.   Ryal  who  was  left  in 
his  Majtys  service  at  Canso  by  Capt.  Young  to  take  care 

^  Belknap  Papers,  N.  H.  Hist.  Soc,  i,  194. 
151 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  the  Trade  between  that  place  and  Louisbourg,  and  was 
there  taken  with  the  Garrison  by  Monsler  Duvlvier,  and  is 
now  going  home,  where  I  hope  he  will  be  of  considerable 
service  to  our  part  of  the  world,  with  the  Lords  of  Admiralty 
and  other  parts  of  the  ministry,  from  his  particular  knowl- 
edge of  Louisbourg,  and  of  its  harbour ;  and  of  the  great 
consequences  of  the  acquisition  of  Cape  Breton  and  the 
keeping  of  Canso  and  Annapolis  to  his  Majtys  northern 
Colonies  ;  Be  pleased  to  give  me  leave  to  introduce  him  to 
you,  as  an  honest,  worthy  young  officer,  and  whatever 
countenance  and  civilities  you  shall  show  him  for  the  two 
or  three  days  he  will  stay  at  Piscataqua  will  be  esteemed 
favours  done  to 

Your  Excys  most  obedient 
humble  servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy  Gov.  Wentworth 

P.S.  I'll  send  the  warrts  you  write  for  in  your  last,  very 
soon. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  JONATHAN  LAW^ 
Sir, 

Divers  Soldiers  belonging  to  General  Philips's  Regi- 
ment, who  were  taken  from  Canso,  &  returned  hither  from 
Louisbourg  in  the  French  Flag  of  Truce,  have  deserted  from 
Castle  William,  where  they  were  quartered  'till  his  Maj- 
esty's Pleasure  should  be  known  about  them :  And  the 
Officers  of  the  said  Soldiers  have  advertised  their  Desertion 
In  the  Print  herewith  Inclosed,  &  offered  a  Reward  to  such 
Persons  as  shall  apprehend  and  secure  them ;  And  it  being 
probable  that  they  may  be  got  Into  your  Governmt  &  entred 
on  board  some  Privateer  or  other  Vessel  outward  bound, 

^  Law  Papers  2,  37.  Printed:  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  ii,  244. 
A  similar  letter  was  sent  to  Governor  Wentworth  of  New  Hamp- 
shire (N.  H.  Prov.  Papers  5,  931).  It  is  a  fair  example  of  the 
vigilance  displayed  by  Shirley  in  looking  after  enlistments  in  the 
Louisbourg  campaign. 

152 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

I  must  pray  your  Honour  to  give  Orders  to  your  Officers  to 
search  for  them,  &  if  they  or  any  of  them  may  be  found  to  ap- 
prehend and  secure  them.  You  will  excuse  me  if  I  urge  this 
Matter  with  some  Earnestness,  it  being  of  great  Importance 
for  the  Preservation  of  his  Majesty's  Interest  at  Annapolis 
Royal  that  all  these  Soldiers  returned  from  Louisbourg  should 
be  kept  from  Desertion,  and  ready  to  execute  his  Majesty's 
Orders,  which  I  expect  to  receive  early  in  the  Spring. 
I  am,  Your  Honours  most  obedient 
humble  Servant 

W.   Shirley. 
Boston,  Novr  19,  1744. 
The  Honourable  Jonathan  Law  Esqr. 
Endorsed : 

Govr.  Shirley's  Letter  Novbr  1744 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

Boston,  New  England,  Deer.  7,  1744. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Having  found  a  Pipe  of  Madeira  Wine  in  my  Cellar, 
which  the  Judges  of  that  Liquor  reckon  extraordinary 
good  in  it's  kind,  and  as  that  sort  of  Wine  is  generally 
esteem'd  better  when  it  goes  round  than  when  it  is  im- 
ported directly  from  Madeira  to  England,  I  have  sent  it 
to  Mr.  Thomlinson  ^  the  Agent  for  New  Hampshire,  whom 
I  have  desir'd  to  receive  and  take  care  of  it  'till  it  shall  be 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32703,  438.  A  transcript  is  in 
the  Library  of  Congress.  The  letter  is  printed  as  an  illustration  of 
the  manner  in  which  the  appointees  of  London  ministers  catered 
to  the  personal  tastes  of  their  patrons. 

2  John  Thomlinson  had  been  one  of  the  opponents  of  Governor 
Belcher  during  the  latter  portion  of  his  regime  and  his  opposition 
had  been  an  important  factor  in  bringing  about  the  change  in 
the  Massachusetts  government  as  well  as  that  of  New  Hampshire. 
In  his  letter  to  Newcastle  of  Mar.  3,  1738-9,  Shirley,  however, 
had  denied  participation  in  the  plan  to  oust  Belcher  from  office. 
See  letter  of  Mar.  3,  ante,  p.  13. 

153 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

fit  for  your  Grace's  drinking  and  then  to  wait  upon  your 
Grace  and  beg  the  Honour  of  your  Acceptance  of  it  from  me, 
and  receive  your  Grace's  Commands  for  his  manner  of  con- 
veying it  to  your  Cellar. 

We  esteem  the  Madeira  to  be  the  most  wholesome  of 
Wines  in  New  England,  and  if  this  shall  be  acceptable  to 
your  Graces  Taste  and  contribute  in  any  measure  to  your 
Grace's  Health,  which  it  is  my  Duty  to  wish  and  pray  for, 
it  will  be  a  singular  pleasure  to 

Your  Grace's  most  Dutiful 

and  most  Oblig'd  Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed: 

New  England.     Deer  7.  [1744] 
Govr.  Shirley. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH^ 

Boston,  December  20,  1744. 
Sir, 

The  General  Assembly  of  this  Province  in  their  consulta- 
tions respecting  the  methods  of  carrying  on  the  Warr 
so  as  it  may  be  most  for  the  Protection  of  his  Majestys 
subjects  in  these  Parts  and  least  expensive  to  both  Prov- 
inces, among  other  things  have  judged  that  it  will  be  for 

^  Belknap  Papers,  N.  H.  Historical  Society,  i,  190,  N.  H.  Prov. 
Papers  5,  932.  Benning  Wentworth  was  born  at  Portsmouth, 
N.H.,  July  24,  1696,  and  died  in  that  town  Oct.  14,  1770.  He 
was  the  eldest  son  of  Lieutenant  Governor  John  Wentworth,  was 
educated  at  Harvard  College,  where  he  graduated  in  171 5  and  in 
1734  became  governor  of  the  colony.  He  served  in  this  position 
until  1767,  and  during  Shirley's  term  of  office  was  one  of  his  most 
faithful  supporters  among  the  New  England  governors  and  the 
one  to  whom  the  Massachusetts  governor  first  turned  for  assistance. 

154 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  common  advantage  of  the  Province  of  New  Hamp- 
shire &  this  Province  that  we  should  act  in  conjunction  in 
this  important  Business,  and  that  we  should  agree  together 
as  well  concerning  the  measures  to  be  pursued  in  the  action 
of  War,  as  the  Proportion  of  men  which  each  Province 
should  furnish,  and  of  the  charge  to  be  respectively  born 
by  them ;  and  therefore  the  two  Houses  have  desired  me  to 
propose  to  your  Excellency  that  Commissioners  may  meet 
together  on  this  affair.  As  I  am  fully  sensible  that  such 
an  agreement  between  us  will  very  much  tend  to  promote 
his  Majesty's  service  &  the  Benefit  of  both  Provinces,  I  de- 
sire you  would  take  the  matter  into  consideration,  &  let  me 
know  your  Resolution  upon  it  as  soon  as  may  conveniently 
be ;  and  if  your  Assembly  inclines  to  favour  this  Proposal 
that  you  will  please  to  let  me  know  what  time  &  Place  you 
judge  will  be  most  convenient  for  such  commissions  to  meet, 
either  your  Excellency  in  person  or  such  Commissioners  as 
you  shall  appoint  to  manage  this  affair  for  your  Governmt. 
I  doubt  not  but  you  will  give  this  affair  a  speedy  Dispatch, 
his  Majesty's  service  requiring  us  to  act  with  the  utmost 
vigour  for  the  safety  of  his  subjects  in  these  Provinces.  I 
have  inclos'd  a  copy  of  the  Resolution  of  our  Assembly  upon 
this  subject,  which  will  give  you  further  Light  into  it. 
I  am,  your  Excellency's  most  obedient 
Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 

DUKE  OF  NEWCASTLE  TO  WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  ^ 

White  Hall, 

Jany  3,  1744- 
Sir, 

His  Majesty  having  thought  it  necessary  for  the  Secu- 
rity of  the  Collonys  in  North  America,  and  particularly  of 
the  Province  of  Nova  Scotia,  (which  has  been  already  in- 

^  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  i,  20.  Similar  orders  were  sent  to  the 
governors  of  other  colonies  in  America.  For  the  one  to  Rhode 
Island,  see  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  132. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

vaded  by  the  French,  &  upon  which  there  is  great  reason  to 
apprehend  that  they  will  early  in  the  Spring  renew  their 
attempts  by  the  attack  of  Annapolis  Royal)  to  employ  such 
a  Strength  of  Ships  of  Warr  in  those  Seas  under  the  Com- 
mand of  Comodore  Warren  as  may  be  sufficient  to  protect 
the  sd  Province,  and  the  other  neighboring  CoUonys  in  North 
America,  and  the  Trade  and  Fishery  of  His  Majesty's  Sub- 
jects in  those  parts  and  may  also  as  Occasion  shall  offer, 
attack  and  distress  the  Enemy  in  their  Settlements,  and 
annoy  their  Fishery  &  Commerce, 

I  have  His  Majs  Commands  to  signify  to  you  his  Pleasure 
that  if  Mr.  Warren  shall  apply  to  you  for  assistance,  either 
of  Men,  Provisions,  or  Shipping  to  enable  him  to  proceed 
either  to  the  Relief  &  Succour  of  Annapolis  Royal,  or  of  any 
other  of  His  Majs  Forts  or  Settlements,  or  for  making  any 
Attempts  on  the  enemy.  You  should  in  all  such  cases  be 
aiding  &  assisting  to  him  in  the  most  Effectual  Manner, 
and  according  as  upon  Consultation  together  shall  be  judged 
proper  for  carrying  on  His  Majs  service ;  and  you  will  be 
ready  to  concert  and  advise  with  Mr.  Warren^  upon  all  Occa- 
sions that  may  arise  which  shall  have  Relation  to  the  Serv- 
ices on  which  he  is  employed,  and  particularly  you  will 
procure  and  communicate  to  him  the  best  Intelligence  you 
shall  be  able  to  obtain  of  the  State  and  Condition  of  the 
Enemy's  Settlements  and  of  the  Ships  in  their  Harbours 
that  he  may  be  enabled  to  judge  whether  it  may  be  practi- 
cable and  advisable  to  make  an  Attempt  upon  any  of  their 
Ports. 

HoLLEs  Newcastle. 

To  the  Governor  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay. 

Endorsed: 

A  copy  of  his  Majesty's  Orders  to  me  signified  in  a  letter 
from  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Examined,  W.  Shirley. 

^  Peter  Warren  was  born  in  1703.  For  his  services  in  the  Louls- 
bourg  campaign  he  was  knighted  and  raised  from  the  rank  of  Cap- 
tain to  that  of  Admiral. 

156 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

Boston,  New  England.     Jany.  5,  1744. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Since  my  last  to  your  Grace  I  have  an  account 
from  Annapolis  Royal  that  the  Provisions  and  Cloaths 
which  I  sent  to  the  New  England  Auxiliaries  there,  were 
safely  arriv'd,  concerning  which  Colonel  Mascarene  writes 
thus  to  Mr  Engineer  Bastide ;  Everything  goes  well  here,  the 
Auxiliaries  are  CloatKd,  the  provisions  lodged;  Two  V ess  ells 
saird  in  Quest  of  the  Indian  Enemy,  Gorham  in  one  with  part 
of  his  Indian  Company,  and  Wheaton  with  Twenty  Volun- 
teers, Auxiliaries  out  of  the  Garrison,  and  Jones  and  Jaques 
come  from  your  Eastern  parts  in  the  other.  The  North  and 
East  Bastions  are  revested  and  the  Parapet  raised,  a  great 
many  Timbers  round  and  Square  cut  i^ca. 

I  must  observe  to  your  Grace  that  Jones  and  Jaques  are 
two  Officers  under  whom  I  have  lately  sent  80  Volunteers 
from  hence,  all  pick'd  men  for  the  Service  they  are  gone 
upon,  which  being  joined  with  Gorham  and  his  Indians,  and 
the  other  party  of  auxiliaries  from  the  Garrison  may  I  hope 
if  no  unfortunate  Accident  prevents,  bid  fair  for  destroying 
the  Cape  Sable  Indians,  which  are  the  Tribe,  that  chiefly 
infests  the  Garrison,  besides  very  much  distressing  the  St 
Johns  Indians,  and  for  eifecting  what  I  gave  your  Grace 
some  expectation  in  a  former  Letter  would  be  attempted, 
vizt.  ridding  the  Tract  of  Land  distinguish'd  here  by  the 
Name  of  the  Government  of  Annapolis  Royal,  of  the  Cape 
Sable  Indians. 

In  the  abovementlon'd  Letter  Colonel  Mascarene  in- 
forms Mr  Bastide  that  he  had  sent  his  letters  for  me,  by  a 
Vessell  sail'd  two  days  before  from  Annapolis  and  should 
send  Duplicates  by  a  Vessell  to  sail  two  or  three  days  after. 
Had  these  Letters  corne  to  hand  I  should  have  had  a  fuller 

» P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  145. 

1S7 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Information,  no  Doubt,  but  both  the  Vessells  are  at  present 
missing  ones. 

I  have  further  to  inform  Your  Grace,  that  upon  observing 
that  an  Island  opposite  to  his  Majesty's  Castle  William,  the 
main  Fortress  and  Defence  of  this  whole  province  against 
an  Enemy  by  Sea,  lay  within  the  reach  of  a  mortar  from  the 
Works  of  the  Castle,  and  expos'd  to  the  Enemy's  landing 
artillery  upon  it  in  Safety,  whereby  they  might  command 
the  Batteries  and  other  works  of  the  Castle,  whilst  their  own 
men  were  shelter'd  by  the  situation  of  the  Ground  In  the 
Island  and  safe  from  being  annoy'd  from  the  Artillerle  of  the 
Castle,  I  have  after  a  close  application  to  the  Assembly  for 
that  purpose  obtain'd  a  Grant  of  money  from  them  to  enable 
me  to  erect  two  Batteries  and  a  Block  house  upon  the  Island, 
for  securing  it  from  the  Enemy's  landing  either  their  Artillery 
or  men  upon  it,  which  when  finlsh'd  will  render  this  principal 
and  most  serviceable  harbour  in  his  Majesty's  Colonies  in 
North  America  much  more  secure  than  it  was  before  :  and 
for  this  purpose  the  Thirtysix  smaller  Iron  Ordnance,  re- 
mainder of  what  his  Majesty  was  lately  pleas'd  in  his  Royal 
Bounty  to  grant  this  Province  in  answer  to  their  Petition, 
are  within  these  few  days  very  opportunely  arrlv'd  under 
Convoy  of  his  Majesty's  ship  Eltham  Capn  Durell,  last 
from  Antigua  where  they  were  forc'd  by  Distress  of  Weather. 

Upon  occasion  of  the  late  Instances  in  which  this  Province 
has  promoted  his  Majesty's  Service,  and  the  prospect  of  it's 
being  able  to  promote  it  further  In  the  Course  of  this  or  any 
future  Warr,  if  it's  present  abilities  continue  the  same,  I 
would  beg  leave  humbly  to  submit  it  to  your  Grace's  con- 
sideration whether  it  seems  to  be  for  his  Majesty's  Interest 
that  it  should  be  still  further  reduced  in  It's  limits  (than 
It  has  allready  lately  been  by  the  Settlement  of  the  New 
Hampshire  line)  since  the  Consequence  of  such  Reduction 
might  be  to  render  It  less  Serviceable  to  the  Crown  against 
the  Enemy  in  these  parts. 

I  will  not  trouble  your  Grace  with  a  Repetition  of  the 
Necessity,  which  there  seems  to  be  that  the  Garrison  of  An- 
napolis Royal  should  be  protected  very  early  in  the  spring 

is8 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

from  Great  Brittain  by  one  or  more  of  his  Majesty's  Ships. 
As  the  Bomb  or  Comet,  is  upon  the  Point  of  sailing  for  the 
Leeward  Islands,  I  shall  apprize  Commodore  Warren  like- 
wise of  the  Circumstances  of  the  Garrison,  and  no  Endeav- 
ours of  mine  for  further  assistance  of  it  from  this  Prov- 
ince shall  be  wanting,  and  if  any  opportunity  of  annoying 
the  Enemy's  Settlements  from  hence  shall  present  it  self  to 
me,  your  Grace  may  depend  upon  the  most  Indefatigable 
Attention  from  me  to  improve  it  for  his  Majesty's  Service. 
I  am  with  the  most  dutifull  Regards 
My  Lord  Duke 

Your  Grace's  most  obedient 
and  most  devoted  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed: 

Boston  Janry  5th  1744/s 

Govr  Shirley 
B  16  March  (by  Mr  Loring) 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   THE   GENERAL   COURT 
OF  MASSACHUSETTS! 

Gentlemen  of  the  House  of  Representatives, 

As  we  must  expect  in  the  course  of  the  present  War  the 
utmost  annoyance  of  our  Navigation  and  Trade  in  general, 
and  frequent  captures  of  our  provision  vessels,  and  the  de- 
struction of  our  Fishery  In  particular  from  the  Harbour  of 
Louisbourg,  it  is  evident  that  nothing  would  more  effectu- 

^  This  message  was  delivered  to  the  Assembly  on  Jan.  9, 
1744-5.  Mass.  Arch.  Court  Records,  17,  4,  629.  On  the  same  day 
Shirley  wrote  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  expressing  his  thanks  for 
the  King's  approval  of  his  conduct.  He  also  statec  the  necessity 
of  providing  for  the  security  of  Fort  Dummer.  The  letter  is  in 
C.  O.  5,  900,  147.  This  message  was  inclosed  by  Shirley  in  a  letter 
of  Jan.  14  to  Newcastle.  See  also  Shirley's  message  of  Jan.  19, 
■post,  p.  167. 

^59; 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ally  promote  the  interests  of  this  Province  at  this  juncture 
than  a  reduction  of  that  place;  and  I  doubt  not  but  every 
Gentleman's  zeal  for  the  welfare  and  prosperity  of  his  coun- 
try will  sufficiently  animate  him  to  lay  hold  on  any  favour- 
able opportunity  for  procuring  so  inestimable  an  advantage 
and  benefit  to  it,  without  any  arguments  from  me  for  that 
purpose.  Such  an  opportunity  seems  now  to  present  itself, 
which  I  will  just  point  out  to  you. 

From  the  best  information  that  can  be  had  of  the  circum- 
stances of  the  Town  and  of  the  number  of  the  soldiers  and 
Militia  within  it,  and  of  the  situation  of  the  Harbour,  I 
have  good  reason  to  think  that  if  Two  Thousand  men  were 
landed  upon  the  Island  as  soon  as  they  may  be  conveniently 
got  ready  (which  as  I  am  credibly  informed  may  be  done  in 
the  proper  part  of  the  Island  for  that  purpose  with  little  or 
no  risque)  such  a  number  of  men  would,  with  the  blessing  of 
Divine  Providence  upon  their  Enterprize,  be  masters  of  the 
field  at  all  events,  and  not  only  possess  themselves  of  their 
two  most  important  batteries  with  ease,  break  upon  their 
Out  Settlements,  destroy  their  Cable  and  Magazines,  ruine 
their  Fishery  Works,  and  lay  the  town  in  mines,  but  might 
make  themselves  masters  of  the  Town  and  Harbour. 

It  cannot  be  expected  that  I  should  enter  here  into  a 
Detail  of  the  manner  of  executing  such  an  attempt.  There 
are  (I  doubt  not)  some  Gentlemen  in  your  House  who  are  in 
a  great  measure  judges  of  the  practicableness  of  the  thing  in 
general ;  which  is  sufficient  at  present ;  and  as  I  am  very 
desirous  of  embracing  every  opportunity  for  the  service  of 
the  country,  I  would  earnestly  recommend  it  to  you  to  make 
a  suitable  provision  for  the  Expences  of  such  an  expedition, 
which,  if  it  should  succeed  no  further  than  with  respect  to 
laying  open  the  enemies  Harbour  and  destroying  their  Out 
Settlements  and  Works,  must  greatly  overpay  the  expence 
of  it,  by  its  consequences  to  this  Province,  and  if  it  should 
wholly  succeed,  it  must  bring  an  irreparable  loss  to  the 
enemy,  and  an  invaluable  acquisition  for  this  Country. 


z6o 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  1 

My  Lord  Duke,  ^°'^°"'  ^-  ^^S^^*  J^^>^  ^4,  1744- 

It  having  been  represented  to  me  by  persons  well  ac- 
quainted with  the  Island  of  Cape  Breton  and  the  Harbour 
and  present  Circumstances  of  Louisbourg  as  practicable  to 
surprize  and  take  it  with  two  thousand  men,  if  attempted 
before  the  Arrival  of  their  expected  Supplies  and  Recruits 
from  Old  France,  and  finding  the  Fishermen  in  particular 
and  the  People  of  this  Province  in  general  so  well  spirited 
for  such  an  Enterprize  that  it  seem'd  no  difficult  matter  at 
this  Juncture  to  raise  that  number  of  Men  upon  the  Occasion 
in  a  very  short  time,  I  recommended  it  to  the  Assembly  in 
my  inclos'd  Message  to  'em  to  make  a  suitable  provision  for 
the  Expence  of  such  an  Expedition,  to  which,  after  a  close 
Consultation  upon  my  Proposal  for  two  days,  and  apprehend- 
ing the  Attempt  too  hazardous,  they  return'd  me  the  inclos'd 
Answer,  praying  in  the  latter  part  of  it  that  I  would  lay  be- 
fore his  Majesty  the  Danger,  which  this  Province  and  the 
Neighbouring  Governments  are  expos'd  to  from  the  Situation 
of  the  French  at  Louisbourg,  and  in  the  name  of  his  Maj- 
esty's most  Loyal  and  Dutiful  Subjects  of  this  province  to 
intreat  his  Majesty's  Compassionate  Regards  to  these  his 
Governments  in  reducing  Cape  Breton,  and  represent  to  his 
Majesty  the  ready  Disposition  of  this  province  to  exert  them- 
selves to  the  utmost  of  their  Abilities  in  conjunction  with  the 
other  Neighbouring  Governments  upon  such  an  Occasion. 

In  Compliance  with  this  Request  I  humbly  beg  leave  to 
lay  before  your  Grace,  and  that  your  Grace  would  be  pleas'd 
so  far  as  you  shall  think  proper,  to  represent  to  his  Majesty 
that  Cape  Breton,  which  was  originally  deem'd  part  of  Nova 
Scotia  and  possess'd  as  such  by  his  Majesty's  Subjects,  till 
it  was  conceded  to  the  French  King  by  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht, 
is  situated  so  as  to  be  a  most  commodious  Harbour,  from 
whence  the  Enemy's  Ships  may  intercept  (in  different  De- 

1  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  152. 

VOL.  I — U  161 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

grees)  the  British  Trade  and  Navigation  to  and  from  this 
province,  the  Colonies  of  Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island, 
and  the  provinces  of  New  Hampshire,  New  York,  the  New 
Jerseys  and  Pensilvania,  also  supply  their  own  Colonies  with 
provisions  from  the  Vessells  of  his  Majesty's  Northern  Col- 
onies, to  the  great  Distress  of  all  his  Sugar  Colonies  in  par- 
ticular, and  very  much  interrupt  the  Coasting  Trade  and 
Navigation  of  the  Northern  Colonies  as  far  as  Pensilvania, 
but  especially  of  this  province ;  And  that  In  particular  the 
New  England  Fishery,  which  since  the  French  have  been  in 
possession  of  Louisbourg  has  been  half  ruln'd  by  their  carry- 
ing on  the  Cape  Breton  Fishery  and  Encroachments  upon 
the  English  Fishery  In  time  of  peace,  will  be  now  in  danger 
of  being  quite  destroy'd  and  lost  to  the  Enemy,  who  have 
already  made  a  Beginning  by  their  Surprize  of  Canso. 

I  would  further  beg  leave  to  represent  to  your  Grace  that 
the  Harbour  of  Louisbourg  Is  most  commodiously  situated  for 
a  place  of  Retreat  for  the  Enemy's  Ships  of  War  navigating 
these  Seas  to  refit  In,  and  also  for  a  Rendezvous  for  'em  to 
form  Expeditions  from  against  his  Majesty's  Northern  Colo- 
nies, especially  Nova  Scotia,  and  as  we  have  had  a  late  In- 
stance of  it's  being  made  use  of  as  a  place  of  Shelter  and 
Refreshment  for  their  East  India  Fleet  In  their  Return  home, 
and  to  meet  Convoy  for  the  Remainder  of  their  passage,  it 
seems  to  be  a  proof  of  what  further  Service  it  may  be  to  'em 
In  time  of  War.  But  what  seems  a  much  more  consider- 
able Advantage  arising  to  the  Enemy  from  their  possession 
of  Cape  Breton  is  that  it  Is  the  principal  Settlement  of  their 
growing  Fishery,  from  which  alone  during  the  Fishing  Sea- 
son they  employ  seven  thousand  men,  and  from  whence  they 
may  effectually  protect  their  own  Fishery  and  annoy  the 
British  :  It  would  require  too  particular  Calculations  for  me 
to  pretend  to  ascertain  what  the  Revenue  of  the  whole  Fish- 
ery In  those  Seas,  clear  of  the  French  Incroachments  upon  it, 
would  be  to  Great  Britain,  where  the  profits  arising  from  the 
New  England  Fishery  likewise  chiefly  center  In  the  End ; 
also  what  the  number  of  men  employ'd  in  the  French  Fishery 
is ;   But  the  Revenue  would  certainly  be  very  large,  and  the 

162 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEYi 

Nursery  of  able  Seamen  rals'd  thereby  for  the  Royal  Navy 
be  very  considerably  increas'd ;  And  it  would  render  the 
Roman  Catholick  States  in  the  neighbouring  Seas  in  some 
measure  dependent  upon  his  Majesty's  Subjects  for  part  of 
their  provisions. 

I  would  further  beg  leave  to  observe  to  your  Grace  that 
the  Reduction  of  Cape  Breton  seems  almost  necessary  for 
securing  to  his  Majesty  the  possession  of  Annapolis  Royal 
and  province  of  Nova  Scotia,  and  for  the  Recovery  of  the 
Canso  Fishery ;  At  least  the  Expence  of  maintaining  'em 
whilst  the  French  hold  Cape  Breton  will  probably  equal  that 
of  his  Majesty's  reducing  and  holding  that  Island ;  And  the 
further  Consequence  of  reducing  it  would  be  in  a  great  meas- 
ure cutting  off  in  present  the  French  Navigation  to  and  from 
Canada,  and  would  probably  in  a  little  time  be  attended 
with  an  easy  Reduction  of  that  Country  also  by  the  joint 
Forces  of  his  Majesty's  Northern  Colonies  assisted  with  a 
few  of  his  Ships  of  War  and  some  few  Troops,  which  Event 
would  give  his  Majesty's  subjects  the  whole  Furr  Trade, 
now  chiefly  in  the  possession  of  the  French  of  Canada,  and 
render  'em  Masters  of  an  entire  Territory  of  about  eighteen 
hundred  miles  extent  upon  the  Sea  Coast,  (reckoning  from 
Georgia  to  Newfoundland  inclusive)  which  from  it's  produc- 
tion of  Naval  Stores  and  it's  Fisheries,  it's  Demands  for 
Woollen  and  other  British  Manufactures  (that  must  increase 
in  proportion  to  the  increase  of  it's  Inhabitants,  who  from 
the  general  Healthfulness  of  the  greatest  part  of  it's  Climate 
make  a  very  quick  progress  in  the  Growth  of  their  Numbers, 
to  which  it  would  be  difficult  to  set  Limits  in  so  large  and 
healthful  a  Country)  and  from  the  Support  it  yields  by  Sup- 
plies of  provisions  and  Lumber  to  his  Majesty's  Sugar  Col- 
onies, (without  which  they  could  not  subsist)  if  the  Value  of 
a  Territory  to  the  Mother  Country  may  be  computed  by 
the  Increase  of  her  Natural  Wealth  and  power,  which  it 
occasions,  may  be  reckon'd  a  more  valuable  Territory  to 
Great  Britain  than  what  any  Kingdom  or  State  in  Europe 
has  belonging  to  it.  And  on  the  other  hand  the  Loss  of 
Annapolis  Royal  and  whole  province  of  Nova  Scotia  to  the 

163: 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

French,  besides  being  attended  with  the  Loss  of  the  New 
England  Fishery,  the  Destruction  of  it's  Trade,  and  the 
breaking  up  of  all  its  Eastern  Settlements,  and  very  prob- 
ably of  the  province  of  New  Hampshire  itself  by  the  Addi- 
tion of  five  or  six  thousand  fighting  men  (which  the  Enemy 
would  gain  by  that  Conquest)  in  Conjunction  with  the  Indi- 
ans of  all  Tribes,  would,  as  it  is  a  Country  fruitful  of  pro- 
visions and  nearly  contiguous  to  Canada  in  which  the  French 
have  increas'd  their  Numbers  exceedingly  within  these  few 
years,  not  only  strengthen  'em  so  greatly  in  Cape  Breton  as 
to  bid  fair  to  give  'em  the  whole  Fishery  and  chief  Naviga- 
tion of  those  Seas,  but  afford  'em  such  a  Footing  upon  the 
Northern  Continent  of  America  as  might  possibly  in  time 
make  'em  think  of  disputing  the  Mastery  of  it  with  the  Crown 
of  Great  Britain.  Such  may  be  the  Difference  between  His 
Majesty's  reducing  Cape  Breton  and  holding  Nova  Scotia, 
and  the  French  King's  holding  Cape  Breton  and  gaining  that 
province,  which  two  last  Events  seem  to  be  too  closely  con- 
nected together,  as  the  Inhabitants  of  Nova  Scotia  are  all 
Frenchmen  and  Roman  Catholicks,  and  who  ought  to  be 
look'd  upon  (be  their  pretensions  what  they  will)  as  ready  in 
their  Hearts  to  join  with  the  Enemy,  whenever  a  French 
Force  sufficient  in  their  Imagination  to  subdue  it  shall  appear 
in  their  Country  :  and  so  much  seems  to  depend  upon  reduc- 
ing Cape  Breton  to  the  Obedience  of  his  Majesty,  that  the 
Reduction  of  it,  if  estimated  from  it's  beforemention'd  Con- 
sequences to  the  particular  Interests  of  the  British  Crown 
and  Dominions,  might  seem  almost  of  itself  to  be  near  an 
Equivalent  for  the  Expence  of  a  French  War. 

As  the  Motives  which  induc'd  me  to  propose  at  this  time 
to  the  Assembly  an  Expedition  from  hence  for  surprizing 
Cape  Breton  may  be  thought  of  some  force  still,  I  shall  just 
mention  the  chief  of  'em  to  your  Grace.  There  seem'd  to 
be  now  an  advantageous  Opportunity  to  attempt  the  Reduc- 
tion of  it  on  account  of  it's  present  scarceness  of  provisions 
and  probably  of  Military  Stores ;  The  Garrison,  which  has 
not  yet  receiv'd  any  Recruits  since  the  Commencement  of 
the  War,  does  not  exceed  seven  hundred  men,  one  hundred 

164 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

and  forty  of  which  being  Swiss  and  their  best  Troops  are 
greatly  discontented,  and  did  not  scruple  to  talk  in  a  very 
mutinous  manner  when  some  of  our  people  were  prisoners 
there ;  And,  as  I  am  inform'd,  there  is  an  Hill  on  the  back 
of  the  Town,  and  at  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile's  Distance  from 
it,  from  whence  it  may  be  extremely  annoy'd  with  Safety  to 
the  Besiegers,  and  which  the  French  level'd  about  twelve 
feet  of  last  Summer,  and  will  doubtless  go  on  to  level  as  fast 
as  they  can,  but  have  not  so  lower'd  yet  as  to  take  away  the 
Danger  arising  from  it. 

I  would  further  beg  of  your  Grace  that  your  Grace  would 
be  pleas'd  to  represent  to  his  Majesty  that  his  most  Loyal 
and  Dutiful  Subjects  within  this  province  are  not  only  most 
readily  dispos'd  but  desirous,  in  case  his  Majesty  shall  be 
graciously  pleas'd  to  attempt  the  Reduction  of  Cape  Breton 
to  it's  former  Obedience  and  Subjection  to  his  Crown,  to 
exert  themselves  to  the  utmost  of  their  abilities  upon  this 
Occasion  in  conjunction  with  his  Majesty's  other  Neigh- 
bouring Governments,  which  I  have  herein  before  mention'd 
to  your  Grace,  or  such  of  'em  as  his  Majesty  shall  be  pleas'd 
to  lay  his  Commands  on  to  assist  in  such  an  Expedition ; 
And  whatever  proportion  of  Men  his  Majesty  shall  be  pleas'd 
to  allot  this  province  to  raise  and  transport  to  Cape  Breton 
or  of  the  other  Expences  of  it  to  bear  I  hope  I  may  venture  to 
assure  your  Grace  of  their  most  Dutiful  and  cheerful  Com- 
pliance with  it ;  And  I  most  humbly  beg  of  your  Grace  to 
assure  his  Majesty  that  at  all  Events  his  Majesty  may  depend 
upon  my  utmost  Zeal  and  Attention  in  the  performance  of 
my  Duty  and  promoting  his  Service  upon  this  Occasion. 
I  am  with  the  most  Dutiful  Regards 
My  Lord  Duke 

Your  Grace's  most  Obedient 
and  Most  Devoted  Servant 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle.  W.  Shirley. 

Endorsed : 

Boston.  Jany  14th  1744/s 
Govr  Shirley 

3  1 6th  March  (by  Mr  Loring) 

i6s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


BY  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  — PROCLAMATION » 

By  his  Excellency  William  Shirley,  Esq. 
Captain  General  &  Governour-in-Chief  in 
&  over  his  Majesty's  Province  of  Massa- 
chusetts  Bay  in  New  England. 

Whereas  it  appears  to  me  that  his  Majesty  has  been  pleased 
by  his  Royal  Warrant  bearing  date  the  twelfth  day  of  De- 
cember 1743,  in  the  seventeenth  year  of  his  Reign,  to  con- 
stitute and  appoint  his  Excellency  Benning  Wentworth  Esq. 
his  Majesty's  Governor  of  New  Hampshire  to  be  surveyor 
general  of  all  his  Woods  within  the  Colonies  &  Plantations 
in  America,  and  whereas  the  said  Benning  Wentworth  Esq. 
has  signified  his  desire  that  I  would  issue  my  Warrant  to  the 
proper  officers  within  this  Province  (and  more  especially 
within  the  county  of  York)  to  do  what  may  be  necessary  on 
their  Part  for  the  assistance  of  himself  &  his  Deputy  Sur- 
veyors in  the  Execution  of  their  office : 

I  do  therefore  hereby  require  all  his  Majesty's  Justices  of 
the  Peace,  Sheriffs  &  other  his  Majesty's  officers  within  this 
Province  (&  more  especially  In  the  county  of  York)  whom  it 
may  concern,  to  give  all  necessary  assistance  to  the  said 
Benning  Wentworth  &  his  Deputy  or  Deputies  In  the  due 
Execution  of  their  office  agreeable  to  the  several  acts  of 
Parliament  and  the  Laws  of  this  Province  relating  to  the 
same,  That  so  his  Majesty's  Royal  Pleasure  and  Intention 
therein  for  the  Preservation  of  his  Woods  within  this  Prov- 
ince &  the  Prevention  of  all  Waste  &  spoil  thereof  may  be 
rendered  effectual :  for  wch  this  shall  be  a  sufficient  Warrant. 

Given  under  my  Hand  &  Seal  at  Boston  the  fourteenth 
day  of  January  1744,  in  the  eighteenth  year  of  His  Majesty's 
Reign. 

W.  Shirley. 


^  Original  Manuscript  Correspondence  in  Office  of  Secretary  of 
State  of  New  Hampshire.     Printed:    N.  H.  Prov.  Papers  5,  223. 

166 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY   TO    THE   GENERAL   COURT 
OF  MASSACHUSETTS! 

Gentlemen  of  the  Council  and 

House  of  Representatives, 

Being  informed  that  the  same  spirit  which  appears  in  the 
Subscribers  to  the  Petition  herewith  laid  before  you,  pre- 
vails all  over  the  maritime  parts  of  the  Province,  I  would 
recommend  it  to  you  (notwithstanding  you  have  lately 
declared  to  me  your  sentiments  in  general  upon  the  matters 
contained  in  the  Petition)  inasmuch  as  a  particular  scheme 
for  effecting  the  Enterprize  therein  mentioned  is  proposed 
by  some  Gentlemen  (as  the  Petitioners  suggest)  to  give  those 
Gentlemen  an  hearing  by  a  Committee  of  both  Houses,  or 
otherwise  as  you  shall  judge  most  proper,  upon  the  practi- 
cableness  of  their  particular  proposal,  &  to  determine  upon 
it  according  as  it  shall  appear  to  you  upon  the  inquiry. 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY  TO  THE    GENERAL    COURT 
OF   MASSACHUSETTS  2 

Gentlemen  of  the  Council  and 

House  of  Representatives, 

As  the  more  I  consider  the  proposed  Expedition  for  re- 
ducing Cape  Breton,  the  more  I  am  persuaded  Three  thou- 
sand men  could  be  safely  landed  upon  the  Island  for  that 
purpose,  tho  all  attempts  for  taking  it  by  surprise  should 
fail  of  success ;   that  such  a  body  of  Forces  with  a  train  of 

^  This  message  was  delivered  to  the  Assembly  on  Jan.  19, 
1744-5.  Mass.  Arch.,  Court  Records,  17,4,  649.  It  accompanied 
a  petition  from  "Benjamin  Marston  Esqr  and  a  great  number  of 
others  Inhabitants  of  Marblehead,  shewing  the  practicableness  of 
an  Expedition  against  Cape  Breton  and  praying  that  the  Court 
would  engage  in  it."     See  the  message  of  Jan.  23  following. 

*  This  message  was  delivered  to  the  Assembly  on  Jan.  23,  1744-5. 
Mass.  Arch.,  Court  Records,  17,  4,  654.  It  is  referred  to  in  the 
Action  of  the  Assembly  on  Jan.  25,  as  of  Jan.  22.     See  post,  p.  169. 

167 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Artillery  that  might  be  sent  from  hence,  must  remain  at 
least  Masters  of  the  Field,  not  only  against  the  regular 
troops  and  other  fighting  men,  computed  to  be  actually 
resident  at  this  season  of  the  year  within  the  walls  of  Louis- 
bourg  (which  do  not  jointly  exceed  the  number  of  nine 
hundred  men  in  the  whole)  but  also  against  such  a  Rein- 
forcement as  may  with  any  probability  be  expected  to  be 
sent  from  old  France  in  the  spring  to  strengthen  that  gar- 
rison, in  case  it  should  happen  that  those  recruits  should  be 
thrown  into  the  Town,  notwithstanding  the  opposition  of 
any  Naval  force  we  should  be  able  to  muster  up  in  these 
parts  to  prevent  it.  As  I  am  persuaded,  I  say  that  Three 
thousand  men,  if  landed  as  soon  as  possible  after  they  can 
be  raised,  would  remain  at  least  Masters  of  the  Field  against 
the  enemy,  tho  any  scheme  for  a  surprise  and  all  other  at- 
tempts for  reducing  the  Town  of  Louisbourg  should  fail  of 
success  (which  yet  thro  the  blessing  of  Divine  Providence 
upon  our  Arms  might  in  the  meantime  be  expected)  till  they 
could  be  supported  by  a  Naval  Force  and  troops  from  Eng- 
land sufficient  to  secure  the  reduction  of  the  whole  Island 
to  the  obedience  of  His  Majesty;  which  succour  I  think, 
could  not  be  reasonably  doubted  of,  if  His  Majesty  is  season- 
ably apprized  of  the  certainty  of  our  attempt ;  for  doing  which 
I  should  use  my  best  endeavours  to  send  proper  intelligence  to 
Great  Britain,  as  well  as  to  the  Commanders  of  His  Majesty's 
Squadrons  in  America,  from  some  or  others  of  whom  also  we 
might  probably  have  some  Naval  force  seasonably  sent  for 
our  assistance  upon  such  an  occasion;  I  think  it  my  duty 
once  more  to  recommend  to  you,  in  the  strongest  terms,  to 
lay  hold  on  the  present  favourable  opportunity,  which  Provi- 
dence seems  to  have  put  into  our  hands,  of  securing  to  the 
Province,  by  the  single  reduction  of  Cape  Breton,  every 
advantage  which  can  contribute  to  its  prosperity  both  by 
land  and  sea,  and  for  embracing  which  opportunity  so 
general  a  spirit  in  the  people  seems  happily  to  be  raised. 
I  am  sensible,  Gentlemen,  that  in  order  to  make  our  levies 
upon  this  occasion  more  expeditious  and  successful  some 
reasonable  pay  or  bounty  should  be  proposed  for  the  en- 

i68 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

couragement  of  Voluntiers  to  enlist  for  the  service  of  this 
expedition  and  that  the  expence  of  it  will  be  very  consider- 
able ;  but  as  all  the  neighboring  Colonies  will  share  in  the 
success,  in  a  greater  or  less  Degree  in  case  we  do  succeed, 
and  Great  Britain  it  self  will  also  reap  most  valuable  benefits 
to  her  trade  from  it,  I  think  we  have  the  utmost  reason, 
from  our  past  experience  of  His  Majesty's  Royal  bounty 
and  tenderness  for  the  welfare  of  his  subjects  within  this 
Province,  to  rely  upon  his  Royal  goodness,  that  this  Prov- 
ince shall  not  finally  bear  more  than  its  just  &  reasonable 
proportion  of  the  burthen. 

And  in  the  meantime  I  should  think  that  upon  our  Appli- 
cation to  the  Governments  of  New  York,  New  Hampshire, 
Connecticut  &  Rhode  Island,  which  I  should  not  fail  to  make 
in  the  strongest  manner  I  can  for  their  assistance  of  us  in 
this  expedition  both  with  Sea  and  Land  forces,  that  we  might 
reasonably  depend  upon  their  furnishing  their  respective 
Quotas  toward  this  enterprize ;  in  the  success  of  which  the 
Interest  and  welfare  of  their  Provinces  and  Colonies  are 
likewise  very  nearly  concerned  as  well  as  that  of  this  Prov- 
ince. 

MASSACHUSETTS   GENERAL   COURT 

Action  on  the  Cape  Breton  Expedition  * 

Province  of  the         | 
Massachusetts  Bay  j 

The  Committee  of  both  Houses  upon  the  Subject  of  His 
Excellency's  Messages  of  the  19th  &  22d  Instant  make  the 
following  Report  vizt. 

That  they  have  been  attended  by  two  Gentlemen,  who 
have  lately  been  prisoners  at  Louisburgh  &  by  others  who 
have  been  traders  there  &  who  are  well  acquainted  with  the 

^  On  Jan.  9,  19,  and  23  (although  referred  to  as  Jan.  22),  1744-5, 
Governor  Shirley  placed  the  scheme  of  an  attack  upon  Cape  Breton 
before  the  General  Court,  and  on  Jan.  25  the  action  here  recorded 
was  taken  (Mass.  Archives,  Court  Records,  17,  4,  657-659).  It  was 
forwarded  by  the  Governor  to  New  Hampshire,  Rhode  Island, 
and  Connecticut  with  his  letters  of  Jan.  29,  post,  pp.  171,  172,  177. 

169 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Place  from  whom  the  Committee  have  received  information 
that  the  Garrison  there  does  not  consist  of  more  than  five 
or  six  hundred  regular  Troops  &  that  there  are  not  above 
three  or  four  hundred  fighting  Men  of  the  Inhabitants,  that 
they  have  but  a  small  Stock  of  provisions,  That  they  have  no 
Vessels  of  Force  in  their  Harbour,  &  that  the  place  is  at  this 
Time  less  capable  of  being  defended  against  an  Attack  than 
its  probable,  it  will  ever  be  hereafter. 

The  Committee  therefore  are  of  Opinion  that  it  is  incum- 
bent upon  this  Government  to  Embrace  this  favourable 
Opportunity  to  Attempt  the  reduction  thereof :  And  they 
humbly  propose  that  His  Excellency  the  Captain  General  be 
desired  to  give  forth  his  Proclamation  to  Encourage  the 
Enlistment  of  three  Thousand  Voluntiers  under  such  [proper] 
Officers  as  he  shall  appoint.  That  each  person  so  enlisting  be 
allowed  Twenty  five  Shillings  ^  month  &  that  there  be  de- 
livered to  Each  man  a  Blanket,  that  one  month's  pay  be 
Advanc'd  &  that  they  be  entitul'd  to  all  the  Plunder; 

That  Provision  be  made  for  the  furnishing  of  necessary 
Warlike  Stores  for  the  Expedition ;  That  four  Months  Pro- 
visions be  laid  in ;  That  a  Committee  be  appointed  to  pro- 
cure &  fit  Vessels  to  serve  as  Transports  to  be  ready  to  depart 
by  the  beginning  of  March,  &  that  a  suitable  Naval  Force 
be  provided  for  their  Convoy  as  this  Court  shall  hereafter 
Order ;  That  Application  be  forthwith  made  to  the  Govern- 
ments of  New  York,  the  Jerseys,  Pensylvania,  New  Hamp- 
shire, Connecticut  &  Rhode  Island  to  furnish  their  respective 
Quotas  of  Men  &  Vessels  to  Accompany  or  follow  the  Forces 
of  this  Province 

In  the  Name  &  by  Order  of  the  Committee 

Wm  Pepperell 

In  the  House  of  Representves  Jan.  25,  1744  Read  and 
Accepted.     Sent  up  for  Concurrence 

T.  CusHiNG  Spkr 

In  Council  Jan.  25,  1744  Read  &  Concur'd 

J  WiLLARD  Secry 
Consented  to 

W.  Shirley. 
170 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  JONATHAN  LAW  ^ 

Boston,  January  29,  1744. 
Sir, 

This  goes  by  Express  to  Inform  your  Honour  that  Peti- 
tions having  been  preferr'd  by  a  Considerable  number  of 
the  Inhabitants  of  this  province  to  the  General  Court  here ; 
representing  the  present  weak  state  of  Louisbourg,  and  the 
great  Importance  of  the  Reduction  of  that  place  to  the  Obedi- 
ence of  his  majesty ;  and  a  General  Disposition  Appearing 
in  the  people  to  Engage  in  this  Service  I  recommended  the 
Deliberate  Consideration  of  this  affair  to  the  General  As- 
sembly, who  by  their  Committee  examined  a  great  num- 
ber of  Persons,  who  have  been  Traders  or  prisoners  in  that 
place,  &  have  known  it  both  in  peace  and  War,  some  of 
whom  came  from  thence  in  the  beginning  of  this  Winter. 
This  Examination,  which  was  had  before  a  large  Com- 
mittee of  both  Houses  has  been  so  very  Critical  and  exact 
as  to  take  up  diverse  days  in  the  prosecution  of  it.  The 
Result  of  which  is  a  ChearfuU  &  almost  unanimous  Reso- 
lution of  the  Court  to  undertake  this  Important  Business 
in  such  manner,  as  is  particularly  expressed  in  the  Report 
of  the  Committee  accepted  by  the  whole  Court  which  I 
herewith  Inclose ;  and  wherein  you  will  find  this  Affair  is 
undertaken  by  us  in  full  Confidence  and  Expectation  that 
all  His  Majestys  governments  in  North  America,  who  are 
Concerned  in  Duty  and  Interest  as  well  as  we,  will  readily 
join  with  us  in  so  laudable  a  Design  for  the  Honour  of  his 
Majesty  and  the  safety  of  the  trade  and  navigation  of  all 
those  Colonies  &  Provinces ;  and  our  Expectation  herein 
will  appear  the  more  reasonable  if  it  be  considered  what 
Pains  &  Charge  this  Government  have  been  at  alone  for 
the  saving  his  majestys  Interest  at  Annapolis  Royall  and 
in  the  Province  of  Nova  Scotia  ;  ^   I  must  therefore  earnestly 

^  Original    Conn.   Hist.  Society,  Law  Papers,  5,  30.     Printed : 
Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  11,  253. 

*  Massachusetts  had  sent  a  company  of  200  men  to  the  aid  of 
Lieutenant  Governor  Mascarene  of  Nova  Scotia,  ante,  p.  134. 

171 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

desire  that  all  may  be  done  that  is  possible  to  engage  your 
Colony  to  do  their  full  part  in  Concert  with  us  for  the  Carry- 
ing on  this  expedition,  and  that  you  either  joyn  us  or  soon 
follow  us  with  a  sufficient  force  both  for  the  Land  &  Sea 
service ;  and  as  the  Success  of  this  Affair  depends  much 
upon  Dispatch,  I  doubt  not  but  you  will  use  it.  I  have  pro- 
posed to  the  ministry  in  Great  Britain  the  undertaking  of 
this  Design,  and  earnestly  urged  it  as  of  great  Importance 
to  the  Crown  and  the  Safety  of  His  majestys  Subjects  in 
all  these  parts  before  I  had  any  Thought  of  the  Thing's 
being  Attempted  in  this  Way ;  and  I  shall  now  Write  press- 
ingly  by  the  first  Conveyances  both  to  the  ministry  at 
home  &  to  the  Commanders  of  the  Squadrons  in  the  West 
Indies  to  send  a  Naval  Force  to  meet  us  &  Support  us  in 
our  Design :  I  have  ordered  an  Embargo  of  all  Vessells 
whatsoever,  and  have  Seized  all  the  French  men  among  us 
and  have  endeavoured  to  have  them  kept  under  such  safe 
Custody  as  to  prevent  them  from  sending  any  Intelligence : 
The  same  measures  will  be  necessary  (as  I  apprehend)  in 
your  Government. 
I  am,  Sir, 

Your  Honour's  most  Obedient 
Humble  servant 

W.  Shirley. 
To  the  Honourable  Governour  Law 

Endorsed:   Govr  Shirleys  Letter  concerning  the  Expedition 
to  Cape  Briton  Date  Janr  29 :  1744 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  GREENE  * 

Boston,  Jany.  29,  1744. 
Sir, 

Tho'  I  doubt  not  but  that  the  Interest  of  the  Common 
Cause  of  New  England  will  sufficiently  animate  your  Gov- 
ernmt  to  exert  themselves  Vigorously  in  the  Intended  Ex- 
pedition agt  Louisbourg,  yet  I  would  beg  leave  to  add  that 

*  R.  I.  Col.  Records,  5,  74. 
172 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  Exposd  situation  of  your  Colony  by  sea,  and  the  resent- 
ment of  the  Enemy  agt  it,  on  acct  of  the  activeness  of  your 
privateers,  make  it  particularly  probable  that  you  may  have 
a  sudden  Visit  from  the  French,  this  summer,  if  Cape  Breton 
is  not  reduced. 

The  Gentlemen  who  deliver  this,  will  apprize  Your  Honour 
how  essential  it  is,  towards  our  proceeding  in  this  Important 
Affair,  that  we  should  have  a  Naval  force  before  Louis- 
bourg,  by  the  beginning  or  middle  of  March  at  furthest 
to  cut  off  the  Enemy's  Provision  Vessels,  and  intercept  Mr. 
Duvivier,  who  is  expected  abt  that  time  with  Recruits  for 
the  Garrison,  which  latter  Event  must  be  so  killing  a  blow 
to  the  People  of  the  Town  and  Garrison,  that  it  would  not 
fail  of  being  decisive ;  and  they  will  also  let  you  know  what 
this  government  has  done,  and  what  Applications  I  have 
made  towards  providing  such  a  Naval  force ;  I  hope,  there- 
fore, you  will  not  fail  to  Exert  yourself  in  this  respect.  They 
will  further  inform  you  how  necessary  it  is  that  we  should 
have  a  proper  Train  of  Artillery,  which  should  be  four  pieces, 
of  i8  pd  Shot,  to  24  pd,  of  which  sort  we  have  not  sufficient 
in  our  Castle,  and  I  therefore  hope  you  will  contribute  your 
Quota,  also  in  this  respect. 

I   doubt  not  but  our  united   Force,   vigorously   exerted 

upon  this  Occasion  in  conjunction  with  His  Majesty's  other 

Neighbouring  Colonies,  will  meet  with  success,  which  I  hope 

will  be  the  Event  of  this  Expedition,  and  am,  sir. 

Your  Honour's  most  Obedient  Humble  servant, 

TT     u^    r>  r^  W.  Shirley. 

Honble  Governor  Greene. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   LORDS   OF 
THE   ADMIRALTY  1 

Scheme  for  Attacking  Louishourg 

Memo.  In  order  for  the  attacking  of  Louisbourg  this 
Spring  by  surprise  It  Is  propos'd  that  3000  Troops   should 

^  The  original  of  this  plan  Is  in  P.  R.  O.,  Admiralty  Section, 
Insular  Letters  3817.     A  copy  seems  to  have  been  forwarded  by 

173 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Embark  from  hence  in  Sloops  &  Schooners  and  proceed  for 
Canso,  well  armed  which  should  be  the  place  of  Rendezvous 
it  being  within  20  Leagues  of  Louisbourg ;  and  its  being  un- 
certain that  so  many  vessels  should  be  able  to  keep  Com- 
pany together  when  they  are  arrived  at  said  Port,  to  take  a 
favourable  opportunity  to  sail  from  thence  in  order  to  be 
at  Gaberus  Point  by  Dusk,  from  whence  it  is  but  3  Leagues 
from  Louisbourg,  then  to  push  into  the  Bay,  and  as  soon  as 
said  vessels  are  at  an  anchor  to  man  as  many  whaleboats 
as  they  have  &  send  them  along  the  shore  as  near  as  pos- 
sible, which  will  make  it  the  more  difficult  for  them  to  be 
discovered,  &  when  they  come  to  the  cove  which  faces  the 
low  part  of  the  wall,  there  to  land  if  the  sea  will  permit  and 
scale  that  place  if  possible,  &  if  otherwise  as  the  Wall  breaks 
off  a  little  on  the  other  side  of  the  East  gate,  not  far  from 
that  there  are  picketts  put  for  a  considerable  distance  across 
a  pond  over  to  the  Wall  on  the  Beach  on  the  other  side  of 
the  Pond,  and  as  this  Pond  is  frozen  all  the  month  of  March 
it  is  not  very  difficult  to  get  over  them  :  but  if  the  weather 
will  not  permit  their  landing  in  the  above  place,  let  them 
proceed  along  the  shore  till  they  come  to  a  long  Range  of 
Rocks  that  goes  towards  the  Island,  at  the  End  of  which  is  a 
Passage  where  the  shallops  go  through,  let  them  go  in  there 
and  follow  the  Ledge  of  Rocks  right  back  again,  then  they 
will  land  right  against  the  East  gate  on  a  point,  and  as  there 
are  some  Houses  there,  it  will  hinder  their  being  seen,  but 
one  Boat  ought  to  go  first  &  surprise  the  People  in  those 
Houses  a  little  time  before  the  others  come  up.  Each  whale 
boat  must  have  two  ladders  in  them  of  fifteen  foot  long 
which  may  be  put  in  the  middle  of  the  Boat  without  hin- 
drance to  the  men ;  but  the  Boatmen  must  lay  still  at  this 
Point  till  they  think  the  main  body  is  got  near  the  Town,  & 
that  a  party  of  as  many  men  as  shall  be  judg'd  proper  shall 
be  ready  to  attack  the  Grand  Battery,  its  necessary  it  should 
be  low  water  if  no  Drift  Ice  aground  along  the  shore. 

Shirley  to  Governor  Benning  Wentworth  of  New  Hampshire. 
See  N.  H.  Prov.  Papers,  5,  273.  It  is  printed  in  Mass,  Hist.  Soc. 
Coll.  I,  also. 

174 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

The  remainder  of  the  men  are  to  go  round  the  Picketts 
by  the  north  gate,  and  when  they  get  round  with  Ladders  of 
15  feet  long,  they  can  scale  the  Wall  facing  the  Harbour 
which  is  a  Quarter  of  a  mile  round,  and  it  will  be  absolutely 
necessary  to  appoint  a  Time  to  strike  the  blow  all  at  once, 
which  can  be  done  by  agreeing  upon  a  certain  hour  just  be- 
fore Day,  which  is  the  Sleepiest  Time,  and  the  Commanding 
officer  of  each  Detachment  to  know  the  time,  and  when  the 
Time  comes  by  his  Watch  to  begin  without  further  cere- 
mony ;  The  Enemy  finding  themselves  attacked  at  so  many 
different  places  at  once  its  probable  it  will  breed  such  con- 
fusion among  them  that  our  men  will  have  time  to  get  in 
unm.olested  ;  &  it  is  to  be  observ'd  that  as  the  men  march 
from  the  above  point  the  low  wall  is  on  the  left  hand  of  the 
gate,  and  the  Picketts  on  the  right  hand ;  as  all  the  enemy's 
troops  are  in  the  citadel  except  a  small  guard  or  two  it  will 
be  a  considerable  time  before  the  men  are  drest  &  got  ready 
to  march  out,  and  even  then  it  is  quite  in  the  other  end  of 
the  town. 

This  is  what  probably  may  succeed,  but  least  any  accident 
should  happen  to  prevent  it,  it  will  be  necessary  to  provide 
accordingly  &  in  case  our  People  should  be  discover'd  &  Re- 
puls'd  the  above  number  of  m.en  being  sufficient  to  command 
the  field,  it  will  be  necessary  in  order  to  reduce  the  place  to 
have  what  shipping  can  possibly  be  got  to  cruise  off  the 
Harbour's  Mouth  in  order  to  intercept  their  Provision  ves- 
sels which  they  Expect  early  being  at  this  time  very  short 
of  Provisions,  as  likewise  to  take  any  transports  with  men 
if  any  should  come,  and  that  our  men  may  not  be  dis- 
courag'd  at  being  repuls'd  once,  it  will  be  necessary  to  send 
12  nine  pounders  &  two  small  mortars  with  shells,  &c.  and 
a  Quantity  of  Provisions,  so  to  bombard  them  &  endeavor 
to  make  Breaches  in  their  Walls  &  then  storm  them  :  and 
should  the  shipping  be  so  lucky  to  take  their  Provisions  and 
the  land  forces  take  all  their  cattle  &  keep  them  constantly 
employed,  it  will  be  impossible  for  them  to  hold  the  place 
till  the  last  of  July  for  want  of  provisions. 

In  order  the  better  to  secure  the  Retreat  in  case  a  superiour 

175 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

naval  Force  to  ours  should  come  from  France  &  drive  ours 
off  the  Coast,  it  will  be  necessary  to  have  two  small  vessels 
with  about  Two  hundred  men  at  Canso,  &  the  day  after 
the  Fleet  is  sail'd  for  Louisbourg  for  them  to  sail  so  as  to 
get  in  by  night,  and  it  being  but  six  Leagues  from  Canso  to 
St.  Peters  they  can  get  there  before  day  &  surprise  that 
place,  which  is  an  exceeding  good  harbour  for  small  vessels, 
but  has  not  Water  sufficient  for  vessels  of  that  size  which 
will  be  able  to  drive  ours  off  the  Coast,  so  that  the  vessels 
for  the  Retreat  will  lay  there  safe,  and  the  Troops  be  able 
to  go  to  them  by  Land ;  there  will  be  an  advantage  besides 
this  in  surprising  this  place  as  there  is  always  a  number  of 
Indians  with  their  Families  which  keep  with  a  French  Priest 
at  a  small  Distance  from  the  French  Inhabitants,  and  the 
Booty  taken  there  will  pay  the  Expence  &  more  in  taking  it. 
It  is  to  be  observed  that  during  the  time  our  Troops  lay 
seige  to  the  Town,  it  will  be  in  their  power  to  send  parties 
and  Destroy  all  their  Fishery  on  the  Island  as  well  as  the 
north  side  of  the  Harbour  which  would  ruin  their  Fishery  for 
four  or  five  years ;  and  as  it  is  impossible  to  fail  of  taking 
the  Royal  Battery  at  least,  that  would  in  a  great  measure 
lay  open  their  Harbour  exposed  unto  an  attack  by  Sea  from 
England,  as  the  new  Batterys  in  the  Town  in  the  greatest 
part  of  the  Ambroziers,  there  are  no  guns  &  there  are  two 
gates  that  are  made  in  Diamond  fashion  facing  the  Harbour 
that  can  be  beat  down  in  an  instant  the  pieces  not  being 
but  two  Inches  and  an  half  thick. 

N.  B.  The  full  complement  of  the  Troops  is  700  out  of 
which  deductions  must  be  made  of  50  for  each  of  the  two 
Batteries,  viz.  the  Royal  &  Island  Batteries,  and  50  for  Death, 
sickness  &c.  which  reduce  them  to  550,  and  the  other  fight- 
ing men  in  the  Town  do  not  exceed  300,  and  that  the  Swiss 
Troops  which  are  their  best  Troops  are  exceeding  Discon- 
tented and  mutinous ;  also  that  at  St.  Peters  there  may  be 
about  200  men  in  scatter'd  houses,  and  in  the  suburbs  of 
the  Town  of  Louisburg  without  the  Walls  about  200.  it  is 
improbable  that  more  than  two  30  or  40  Gun  ships  should 
come  with  Mr.   Duvivier  who  may  be  expected  the  first 

176 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

with  Recruits  and  supplies,  and  in  case  the  naval  Force  that 
comes  should  be  superiour  to  our  naval  Force,  that  our 
3000  men  would  command  the  Field,  and  continue  so  till  they 
could  be  protected  and  Reinforc'd  from  England. 

Endorsed:  Governours  Shirley's  letter  and  scheme  dated 
29th  January  1744. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH » 

Boston,  Jany.  31,  1744. 
Sir, 

To  the  inclosed  Circular  Letter^  drawn  by  the  Secretary 
and  sent  to  all  the  neighbouring  Governmts  as  far  as  Pen- 
silvania,  I  have  to  add  that  it  may  be  urg'd  with  respect  to 
your  Province  that  it  seems  to  be  more  deeply  interested  in 
the  Event  of  this  Expedition  than  any  of  the  other  colonies  : 
For  if  Cape  Breton  is  not  reduced,  there  appears  to  be  great 
danger  that  the  French  will  soon  be  masters  of  Nova  Scotia, 
the  consequences  of  which  would  be  an  addition  of  4  or 
5000  fighting  men  to  the  Enemy  immediately  from  the  In- 
habitants of  that  Province ;  who  in  conjunction  with  the 
Indians  of  all  Tribes,  and  assistance  from  Canada  would 
irresistibly  over  run  and  destroy  all  our  eastern  settlemts 
as  far  as  Portsmouth  itself  in  your  Province,  and  whether 
they  would  stop  there  may  be  some  Question ;  Whereas 
the  reducing  of  Cape  Breton  would  on  the  other  hand  be 
the  Destruction  of  Canada.  This,  I  observe  with  respect 
to  your  Assembly ;  with  regard  to  yourself  I  know  no  other 
motives  need  be  urged  than  our  Duty  to  his  Majesty  and 
zeal  for  the  good  of  the  common  cause.  ...  I  am.  Sir 
Your  Excellency's  most  obedient 
Humble  servant 

W.  Shirley. 

His  Excy  Govr  Wentworth. 

^Original,  Belknap  Papers,  N.  H.  Hist.  Soc,  I,  202.     Printed: 
N.  H.  Prov.  Papers,  5,  932. 

^  See  Shirley  to  Law,  Jan.  29,  ante,  p.  171. 
VOL.  I — N  177 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH 


n  Boston,  Feby  2,  1744. 

In  answer  to  my  repeated  applications  for  that  purpose, 
I  received  an  Instruction  from  his  Majesty  whereby  I  am  per- 
mitted during  the  continuance  of  the  present  Warr  to  give 
my  consent  for  the  Emission  of  such  sums  in  paper  bills  as 
the  Emergencies  of  the  Warr  shall  require  :  and  I  should 
think,  if  you  consent  to  the  Emission  of  a  further  sum  in 
bills  than  what  your  Instructions  would  otherwise  permit,  for 
the  service  of  so  extraordinary  Emergency  as  the  intended 
Expedition,  provided  such  sum  is  appropriated  to  that  use, 
that  you  would  not  run  any  great  risque  of  censure  at  home, 
but  rather  have  your  conduct  approved  of,  if  you  can't  pro- 
mote the  Expedition  upon  other  terms. ^ 

As  your  Express  only  stays  for  my  answer,  I  will  detain 
him  no  longer  than  till  I  wish  you  success  with  your  As- 
sembly, wch  I  dare  say  would  be  very  acceptable  to  his  Majesty 
upon  this  occasion  ;  and  subscribe  myself  with  much  sincerity 

and  esteem,  Sir         ^.r       -c  ^    i_  j-     ^ 

'  Your  Excys  most  obedient 

Humble  servant 
His  Excy  Govr  Wentworth. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  ^ 

^  Boston,  Feby  3d,  Sunday,  1744. 

I  am  this  moment  favor'd  with  your  Excellency's  second 
Express,  and  am  extremely  glad  to  see  so  good  a  spirit  in 

*  Original,  Belknap  Papers,  N.  H.  Hist.  Soc,  i,  203.  Printed: 
N.  H.  Prov.  Papers,  5,  933. 

*  Shirley  had  secured  permission  to  issue  £50,000  in  bills  of 
credit.  Parkman  considers  this  persuasion  of  Wentworth  by 
the  Massachusetts  governor  as  a  mark  of  the  latter's  talents  in 
working  upon  a  pompous  and  self-important  personage. 

'Original,  Belknap  Papers,  N.  H.  Hist.  Soc,  1,204.  Printed: 
N.  H.  Prov.  Papers,  5,  933.     The  letter  is  not  signed. 

178 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  Gentlemen  of  your  Assembly  as  is  discovered  in  the 
Resolution  of  the  Committee  of  both  Houses  with  wch  you 
have  acquainted  me.  As  to  your  giving  your  consent  to 
an  Emission  of  bills  of  Credit  for  defraying  the  expenses 
of  your  share  in  the  Expedition  wch  so  nearly  concerns  his 
Majesty's  service  and  the  interest  of  his  Northern  Colonies, 
as  also  of  his  British  Dominions,  upon  the  most  mature  con- 
sideration I  am  clearly  of  opinion  that  you  may  safely  do  it 
(as  I  should  not  hesitate  to  do  was  I  in  your  case)  and  that 
it  will  be  approved  of  by  the  ministry  upon  this  extraor- 
dinary, unforeseen  Emergency ;  As  to  myself  I  shall  sign 
an  Act  tomorrow  for  the  Emission  of  50,000  new  Tenour 
upon  this  occasion.  You  will  doubtless  take  care  that  what- 
ever sum  is  emitted  shall  be  appropriated  to  the  service 
of  the  Expedition. 

Half  an  hour  ago  I  received  a  Letter  from  Rhode  Island, 
by  wch  I  have  an  assurance  that  their  Assembly  will  also 
exert  themselves  to  the  utmost  at  this  crisis  of  the  Fate  of 
New  England  ;  and  I  hope  all  the  neighboring  governments 
will  vie  with  each  other  who  shall  contribute  most  in  pro- 
portion to  their  ability,  to  the  common  cause.^ 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  GEORGE  THOMAS* 

Boston,  Feb.  4,  1744. 
Sir, 

Since  the  Departure  of  the  Gentlemen,  by  whom  I  sent 
my  Dispatches  to  you  referring  to  the  Expedition  which  we 
are  forming  against  Cape  Breton,  I  have  Advice  from  Gov- 

^  Shirley  was  not  so  successful  in  Rhode  Island  as  in  New 
Hampshire.  The  Rhode  Island  Assembly  sent  no  men  to  aid  in 
the  expedition  since  it  was  not  approved  by  the  British  authorities. 
The  colony  sloop  Tartar,  "equipped  with  all  necessary  warlike 
stores,"  was  placed  at  the  disposal  of  Shirley.  She  carried  fourteen 
cannon  and  twelve  swivels,  and  was  to  be  manned  by  a  force  of  not 
over  one  hundred  and  thirty  seamen.      R.  I.  Col.  Records,  5,  100. 

^  Original,  Hist.  Soc.  Penna.  Coll.  Same  letter  except  P.S. 
to  Governor  Law  of  Connecticut,  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  11,  255. 

179 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ernour  Wentworth  that  the  Assembly  of  New  Hampshire 
have  very  chearfully  determined  to  join  with  us,  and  have 
Voted  to  raise  two  hundred  &  fifty  Land  Forces  for  this  Serv- 
ice, and  that  he  hopes  to  persuade  them  to  raise  a  greater 
number.  I  have  Hkewise  Letters  from  the  Gentlemen  I 
sent  to  Rhode  Island,  informing  me  that  the  people  there 
are  much  spirited  to  engage  in  this  Business,  &  that  the 
Assembly  will  meet  in  a  day  or  two  to  consult  on  the  Affair ; 
And  that  it  looks  probable  that  they  will  furnish  their  full 
Quota  of  Land  Forces  for  this  Service,  if  not  more,  as  also 
a  private  Ship  of  War  of  Twenty  Guns  which  now  lyes  in 
their  Harbour.  I  thought  it  of  Importance  that  your 
Honour  should  be  informed  of  these  things ;  not  doubting 
but  you  will  make  a  proper  Use  thereof  for  exciting  an 
Emulation  in  your  People  &  for  encouraging  them  to  do 
their  part  to  promote  His  Majesty's  Service  &  the  common 
Interest  of  these  Provinces,  which  so  much  depends  upon 
the  Success  of  this  Enterprise.  We  are  going  on  in  our 
preparations  &  now  beginning  our  Levies ;  And  I  think  Our 
People  are  full  of  Spirit  &  with  Dependance  on  the  Blessing 
of  Providence  I  hope  for  a  prosperous  Event. 
I  am  Sir 

Your  Honour's  Obedt. 
humble  Servant. 

W.  Shirley. 

P.S.  Be  pleased  to  give  me  leave  to  add  to  this  Circular 
Letter,  that  the  assistance  of  one  or  both  of  the  two  large 
privateers  belonging  to  some  of  your  provinces  would  be  of 
infinite  importance  in  this  Expedition. 

To  the  Honourable  Governour  Thomas 


i8o 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY- PROCLAMATION » 

Authorizing  Enlistment  of  Recruits 

[Seal]  Province  of  the  Massachusetts-Bay. 

By  His  Excellency  the  Governour, 

I  Do  hereby  authorize  and  impower  [Capt  Richard  Cutt 
junr]  to  beat  his  Drums  within  the  Regiment  of  Militia, 
whereof  [William  Pepperrell]  Esq :  is  Colonel,  for  the  en- 
listing of  Voluntiers  for  His  Majesty's  Service,  in  the  in- 
tended Expedition  against  the  French  of  Cape-Breton  ;  for 
the  Conducting  of  which  Expedition  [William  Pepperrell 
Esqr.  is]  Commander  in  Chief. 

And  the  said  Colonel,  with  the  other  Officers  in  the  said 
Regiment,  are  hereby  commanded  not  to  give  the  said  [Capt 
Richard  Cutt]  any  Obstruction  or  Molestation  herein ;  but 
on  the  contrary  to  afford  him  all  necessary  Encouragement 
and  Assistance,  for  which  this  is  a  sufficient  Warrant. 

And  the  said  [Capt  Richard  Cutt]  is  hereby  required  not 
to  suffer  this  Warrant  to  go  out  of  his  Hands,  nor  to  give 
Copies  of  it  to  any  Person  whatsoever;  but  after  he  has 
made  full  Use  of  it,  to  make  Return  thereof  into  the 
Secretary's  Office. 

Given  under  my  Hand  and  Seal  at  Boston,  the  [fifth] 

Day  of  [February]  1744.     In  the  Eighteenth  Year  of 

His  Majesty's  Reign. 

W.  Shirley. 

^  Original,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
A,  p.  136.  This  is  a  printed  document,  the  words  in  brackets 
being  filled  in  in  manuscript.  It  is  an  illustrarion  of  the  recruit- 
ing permits  issued  by  Shirley  to  various  ofiicers  at  this  time.  See 
also  Shirley  to  Colonel  Thomas  Bowen,  Feb.  7,  1744,  Boston 
Public  Library  Mss.  v,  225,  and  to  Governor  Benning  Wentworth 
of  New  Hampshire,  Feb.  14,  N.  H.  Prov.  Papers,  5,  935. 


181 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  — PROCLAMATION 

Directing  Assemblage  of  Troops^ 


Province  of  the 
Massachusetts  Bay 


By  his  Excellency  the  Governour 


I  do  hereby  direct  all  Persons  Employed  by  my  War- 
rants to  Enlist  Soldiers  for  the  Present  Expedition  or  who 
have  Enlisted  any  by  Virtue  of  my  Proclamation,  to  repair 
as  soon  as  may  be  with  the  Soldiers  Enlisted  under  them  to 
the  Respective  Places  of  Rendezvous  Underwritten  Vizt : 
Those  Enlisted  to  the  Eastward  of  Biddeford  at  Falmouth ; 
Those  to  the  Westward  thereof  within  the  County  of  York, 
at  York ;  Those  at  Newbury  &  the  Towns  on  Merrimack 
river  in  the  County  of  Essex  together  with  Rowley  to  Ren- 
dezvous at  Newbury ;  Those  Enlisted  in  the  Western  Part 
of  the  County  of  Essex  to  Rendezvous  in  the  Town  of  Salem, 
that  so  the  sd  Soldiers  may  be  Daily  Exercised  &  Fitted 
for  Service,  &  in  case  any  of  the  sd  Officers  have  not  made 
up  their  Compliment  yet  they  that  have  Enlisted  the  Num- 
ber of  Thirty  men  are  hereby  Commanded  to  send  them 
under  some  Officer  to  their  respective  Rendezvous  as  above 
&  all  the  sd  Officers  are  hereby  required  Forthwith  to  send 
me  by  Alexander  Young  the  Bearer  hereof  Lists  of  the  Men 
they  have  Already  Enlisted. 

Given  under  my  hand  at  Boston  the  Thirteenth  day  of 
Febry  1744  in  the  Eighteenth  Year  of  his  Majesty's  Reign 

W.  Shirley. 

^  "  Coppy,"  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61  A, 
p.  140. 


182 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELLi 

Boston,  Febry.  13,  1744. 
Sir, 

I  desire  that  you  would  forthwith  send  Orders  to  the  sev- 
eral Officers  that  are  enlisting  Men  in  the  County  of  York 
to  bring  their  Men  without  Delay  to  the  Places  of  Rendez- 
vous in  the  said  County ;  vizt  those  in  the  Eastern  Parts  so 
far  as  the  Town  of  Biddeford  (including  that  Town)  to 
Falmouth,  &  those  in  the  Western  Part,  at  York,  there  to 
be  billeted  at  twenty  shillgs  per  Week  old  Tenor,  &  to  be 
constantly  exercised  that  they  may  be  fit  for  Service;  And 
I  desire  that  you  would  take  effectual  Care  that  Quarters 
be  provided  for  them  in  York  and  Falmouth  accordingly,  and 
that  you  would  appoint  some  Persons  well  skilled  in  the 
Military  Exercises  for  instructing  them  in  both  Places ; 
Every  Officer  that  has  enlisted  thirty  Men  must  bring  them 
to  the  Rendezvous ;  And  I  further  desire  you  to  get  Lists  of 
every  Officer  of  the  Names  of  the  Men  enlisted,  &  send  them 
to  me  as  soon  as  may  be,  &  take  Care  that  the  Exercises  be 
diligently  attended. 

And  whereas  there  will  be  wanting  150  Men  of  the  Size 
of  Granadiers,  or  as  near  it  as  you  can  find,  to  be  employed 
in  that  Service,  who  must  be  instructed  in  the  Exercise  of 
throwing  hand  Granadoes,  I  desire  you  would  draft  out  of 
the  Men  which  shall  rendezvous  in  your  Town  thirty  whom 
you  shall  judge  most  fit  for  the  Service,  &  send  'em  to  Bos- 
ton forthwith  to  be  instructed  for  that  Purpose. 
I  am.  Sir, 

Your  most  assured  Friend 
and  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 

*  Original,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
A,  p.  141.  Pepperrell  was  commissioned  Lieutenant  General  and 
Commander  in  Chief  of  all  forces  by  sea  and  land  Jan.  31  by 
Governors  Shirley,  Law,  and  Wentworth.  His  commission  to 
hold  Court  Martials  was  from  Shirley  alone  and  was  dated  Mar.  19. 

183 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

You  will  be  pleased  to  employ  as  many  persons  to  assist 
in  the  Services  here  mentioned  as  is  wanting :  and  what  is 
reasonable  must  be  allow'd.^ 

P.S.  I  must  also  desire  the  favour  of  you  to  forward  my 
Warrant  to  the  several  Towns  beyond  you ;  and  to  appoint 
some  very  proper  person  to  view  all  the  Arms,  and  to  take 
a  particular  acct  of  the  different  bores  among  'em  that  balls 
&  Cartridges  may  be  provided  accordingly ;  &  that  I  may 
know  how  many  Firelocks,  Bayonetts,  Cutlasses,  and  Belts 
must  be  provided  to  supply  those  who  want  'em,  or  who 
have  such  as  are  not  fit  for  Use :  and  let  me  know  all  this 
as  soon  as  is  possible. 

Honble  General  Pepperrell 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL « 

Boston,  Feby  14,  1744. 
Sir, 

Perceiving  that  the  Province  of  New  Hampshire  is  likely 
to  fail  at  last  in  furnishing  Levies  for  the  Expedition,  I  have 
propos'd  to  Govr  Wentworth  the  raising  of  five  or  six  Com- 
panies within  his  government  to  go  under  my  Commissions, 
and  in  the  pay  of  this  province,  for  wch  purpose  I  have  sent 
him  six  beating  Orders^  sign'd  in  blank;  and  have  told  him 
that  if  their  having  one  field  Officer  out  of  their  own  province 
would  encourage  the  thing,  I  would  give  a  Commission  to 
such  as  he  should  recommend  wth  your  Approbation :  This 
I  think  is  right  policy ;  and  I  have  endeavour'd  to  do  the 
same  within  Rhode  Island  Colony,  that  we  may  at  all  Events 
be  secure  of  our  3,000  Men  at  least;  and  if  more  than  that 
Number  should  be  rais'd  by  this  means,  it  is  possible  our 
Assembly  may  be  induc'd  to  take  'em  into  pay;   But  at  all 

^  The  last  two  paragraphs  of  the  letter  are  in  the  writing  of 
Shirley. 

2  Original,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61  A, 
p.  142. 

2  See  Shirley  to  Wentworth,  Feb.  14,  N.  H.  Prov.  Papers  5,  935. 

184 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Events  it  behoves  us  to  secure  our  Number  of  3,000  wch 

seems  to  me  necessary  for  effecting  our  scheme.     You  will 

perceive,  I  write  in  a  great  hurry,  and  have  only  at  present  to 

assure  you  that  no  Attention  and  Vigilance  of  mine  shall  be 

wanting  and  that  I  think  the  Affair  has  a  very  good  Aspect. 

I  propos'd  to  Govr  Wentworth  that  he  should  name  either 

a  Lieutent  Colonel  or  Major :   But  if  his  naming  both  those 

Officers  would  promote  the  raising  of  the  Levies  within  his 

province,  it  would  be  well  worth  our  while  to  have  it  so :   If 

there  should  be  Occasion,  I  could  appoint  two  Majors  or 

two  Lieutent  Colonels  to  one  Regiment. 

I  am 

Sir 

Your  most  Humble  Servant 

^^^    Stttrt  ey 
Brigadier  Genl  Pepperiil. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL  ^ 
Sir  Boston,  Feby  17,  1744. 

My  Daughter  Bollan  being  very  dangerously  ill  in  Child- 
bed, I  have  but  just  time  to  acknowledge  the  favour  of  yours 
by  the  post,  and  shall  write  at  large  by  the  return  of  it.  I 
am  intirely  of  your  Opinion  that  not  a  momts  time  should 
be  lost  in  getting  the  forces  ready,  and  upon  further  Con- 
sideration I  would  have  all  of  'em  sent  to  Boston,  the  mo- 
ment they  can  come ;  and  as  any  Number  of  'em  is  raised 
without  staying  for  compleating  the  Regiments  :  For  we 
have  but  ten  days  of  this  Month  left,  and  they  must  be 
fitted  wth  Arms  and  disciplined  a  little  before  they  go. 

I  beg  that  you  would  give  Orders  accordingly  within  the 
County  of  York  and  am  in  the  utmost  hurry,  but  with 
great  truth  q. 

Your  faithfull  Humble 

Brigadier  Genl  Pepperiil.  W.  Shirley. 

^  Original,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61  A, 
p.  142. 

i8s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM   PEPPERRELL  ^ 

Boston,  Feby  i8,  1744. 
Sir, 

The  afflicting  Loss,  I  have  receiv'd  this  Morning  in  the 
Death  of  my  Daughter  Bollan,  will  be  an  excuse  for  the 
Brevity  of  my  Letters.  I  must  desire  you  not  to  lose  one 
Momts  time  in  getting  the  Men  &  Transports  round  to 
this  Place  from  the  County  of  York  for  the  reasons  men- 
tioned in  my  last ;  and  that  you  would  take  the  trouble  to 
forward  by  Express  to  Falmouth  and  the  Eastern  parts 
beyond  it,  the  packets  addressed  to  Colonel  Waldo  and  the 
recruiting  Officers  there,  as  also  some  of  the  Money  re- 
mitted to  you  by  the  Post  for  payment  of  the  Bounty  (in 
part  at  least)  to  those  enlisted  out  of  the  Upper  Regiment,  I 
mean  that  beyond  yours  Eastward,  wch  may  be  necessary 
to  be  done ;  to  be  deposited  in  Col  Waldo's  hands  or  such 
other  person's  as  you  think  proper,  in  case  of  his  Absence  : 
If  our  Affairs  turn  out  so  that  I  can  possibly  spare  'em,  you 
shall  have  some  nine  pounders  for  the  defence  of  your  forti- 
fications. You  will  be  pleased  to  engage  your  Chaplain  and 
Surgeon :  and  it  shall  be  confirmed  by  me  or  any  other 
Officers  you  shall  recommend  of  the  sort. 
I  am  with  much  truth 
Sir 

Your  most  assured  Friend  and 
Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Brigadier  Genl  Pepperill. 

^  Original,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61  A, 
p.  147. 


x86 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH^ 

Boston,  Feby  26,  1744. 
Sir, 

I  am  obliged  to  you  for  your  kind  condolence  wth  me  upon 
my  daughter's  Death,  and  for  your  several  favours  since  my 
lastc  I  am  extremely  glad  to  hear  of  your  good  prospect  of 
completing  your  Regiment  in  time  :  All  things  will  be  ready 
here  for  the  Imbarcation  of  our  fleet  by  the  end  of  the  week 
as  the  committee  informs  me,  so  I  should  be  glad  of  your 
being  ready  with  yours  as  soon  as  may  be ;  whatever  you 
want  for  the  150  men  to  go  with  my  commissions  &  in  the 
pay  of  this  government,  be  pleased  to  send  to  me  for  it  by  Ex- 
press and  you  shall  have  it  instantly. 

I  think  the  essential  thing  is  the  number  of  the  men  in 
the  whole ;  and  that  it  is  not  absolutely  necessary  that  there 
should  be  exactly  50  men  in  each  company,  if  there  are  40  in 
one  and  60  in  another,  all  the  things  may  be  set  right  by  pro- 
portioning the  service  in  the  field ;  and  indeed  if  a  company 
does  not  consist  of  less  than  40  men  I  think  we  ought  not  to 
be  critical.  If  any  of  'em  should  not  rise  up  to  that  com- 
plement, in  such  case  indeed  it  will  be  necessary  to  join  two 
companies  together.  I  take  the  liberty  of  mentioning  my 
sentiments  to  you  in  this  affair,  as  it  is  possible  you  may 
like  to  know  how  I  should  act  in  the  same  difficulties,  which 

^  Original,  Belknap  Papers,  N.  H.  Hist.  Society.  Printed : 
N.  H.  Prov.  Papers,  5,  936.  On  Feb.  14  Shirley  wrote  Wentworth 
that  if  New  Hampshire  would  not  provide  equipment  for  her 
recruits  they  could  enlist  in  the  Massachusetts  companies,  adding 
that  it  would  have  given  "infinite  satisfaction"  if  the  New  Hamp- 
shire governor  could  have  commanded  his  colonial  forces  in  person. 
By  the  i6th  his  views  had  changed,  and  he  wrote  in  a  postscript 
of  that  date :  "  Upon  communicating  yr  offer  of  your  taking  the 
Command  of  the  Expedition  and  proceeding  in  it,  to  two  or  three 
Gentlemen  in  whose  prudence  &  judgmt  I  most  confide,  I  found 
*em  clearly  of  opinion  that  any  alteration  of  the  present  command 
would  be  attended  with  great  risque,  both  with  respect  to  our 
assembly,  and  soldiers  being  intirely  disgusted."  On  Feb.  8 
William  Vaughan  had  written  Pepperrell  congratulating  him  on 

187 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

may  possibly  occur  in  the  raising  of  your  levies,  and  that 
we  act  in  the  same  manner  together.   ... 
I  am  in  the  utmost  hurry 

Your  Excellency's  most 

faithful  Humble  servant, 
His  Excy  Govr  Wentworth.  W.  Shirley. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL^ 

Boston,  Feby  26,  1744. 
Sir, 

1  send  money  now  by  Gerish^  to  make  up  Bounty  Money 
wth  the  £200  Col  Waldo  ^  has  had  before  for  six  Companies 
in  his  Regiment,  and  advanc'd  pay  for  the  same  number, 
wch  we  judg'd  absolutely  necessary  for  us  to  do,  and  desire 
the  favour  of  you  to  remit  to  him,  or  some  other  proper 
person  for  him  by  express  together  with  my  Letter  to  him. 
We  must  desire  you  to  advance  the  months  pay  for  the  Com- 
panies within  your  Regiment,  and  the  moment  you  come 
to  Boston  it  will  be  reimburs'd  to  you.  But  if  that  is  in- 
convenient be  pleas'd  to  send  an  Express  for  it  and  it 
shall  be  instantly  sent  you.  It  is  certainly  of  Absolute 
necessity  that  the  Men  should  be  dispatch'd  round  to  Boston 

his  appointment  as  Commander  in  Chief  (6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll. 
10,  loi),  and  his  letter  seems  to  express  the  general  sentiment  of 
New  England.  The  position  of  second  in  command  was  given 
to  Connecticut  (Shirley  to  Wolcott,  Mar.  8,  posty  p.  193)  to  guarantee 
the  support  of  that  colony. 

^  Original,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61  A, 
p.  147. 

2  Samuel  Gerrish  was  a  messenger  employed  by  the  governors 
of  New  Hampshire  and  Massachusetts  at  this  time.  See  N.  H. 
Prov.  Papers,  5,  748,  where  his  account  is  approved. 

3  On  Feb.  5  Shirley  had  notified  Samuel  Waldo,  a  merchant  of 
Boston  and  owner  of  extensive  estates  in  Maine,  of  his  appoint- 
ment of  Brigadier  General  of  forces  raised  for  the  expedition,  and 
about  the  same  time  had  recommended  him  to  Newcastle.  The 
manuscripts  are  in  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  753. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

without  a  Momts  Delay  * ;  and  I  am  glad  to  hear  you  are  in 
so  fair  a  way  of  having  five  or  six  of  your  Companies  here 
some  time  this  week,  within  wch  time  I  shall  hope  to  see 
yourself  here.  I  imagine  some  of  your  Captains  have  been 
able  to  raise  more  than  their  Complement  of  50  Men,  wch  it 
will  be  right  to  encourage  in  order  to  make  up  for  the  Defi- 
ciencies of  others  :  The  essential  thing  is  to  get  Men,  and 
it  is  not  so  necessary  that  every  Company  should  consist  ex- 
actly of  50  Men ;  If  some  have  40  others  60,  all  may  be  set 
right  by  proportioning  their  Service  in  the  field  ;  And  we  must 
not  be  Critical  as  to  the  exact  Complement  in  each  Com- 
pany, or  indeed  in  any  Company,  provided  none  consists  of 
less  than  40  Men  ;  in  such  case  two  must  be  joined  together, 
and  the  two  persons,  who  rais'd  *em  must  draw  lotts  which 
shall  be  Captain,  and  wch  Lieutent  or  rather  he  that  has 
rais'd  most  should  be  Captain. 

All  things  will  be  ready  here,  the  Committee  informs  me 
for  Imbarcation,  by  the  End  of  this  Week.^  I  am  much 
oblig'd  to  you  for  your  kind  Condolence  with  me  upon  the 
Death  of  my  Daughter,  and  am  in  the  utmost  hurry  with 
much  respect  and  esteem 
Sir 

Your  faithful!  Humble 

Servant  W.  Shirley. 

^  So  on  Feb.  20  Shirley  had  written  Colonel  Thomas  Bowen : 
"Use  your  utmost  Diligence  to  forward  raising  of  the  Soldiers  in 
your  parts."     Ms.  in  Boston  Public  Library. 

^  The  drain  upon  the  province  occasioned  by  the  Louisbourg 
expedition  may  be  judged  from  the  following  note  of  Feb.  25  from 
Shirley  to  Governor  Wentworth  of  New  Hampshire.  "The 
Scarcity  of  men  in  this  Province  is  at  present  so  great,  occasion'd 
by  the  Demand  we  have  for  'em  to  Man  our  own  vessells  design'd 
for  the  service  of  the  Expedition,  that  I  am  obliged  to  let  Capt. 
Graves  go  from  hence  upwards  of  twenty  men  short  of  his  com- 
plement, which  I  am  sorry  'tis  not  in  my  power  to  help  him  to ; 
as  the  speedy  and  safe  arrival  of  his  ship  with  the  Mast  ships  under 
his  convoy  is  of  great  consequence  to  his  Majestys  ships  at  Jamaica, 
if  you  could  get  that  number  of  men  for  him  or  assist  him  in  pro- 
curing them,  it  would  very  much  promote  his  Majesty's  service, 
and  be  esteem'd  by  me  as  a  particular  obligation." 

189 


CORRESPONDENCE  OP  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  ^ 

Boston,  March  2d,  1744. 
Sir, 

Last  night  I  had  the  favour  of  your  answer  to  my  last 
Express,  and  am  sorry  to  find  it  will  be  inconvenient  for 
your  Troops  to  come  round  to  Boston  in  order  to  join  and 
proceed  wth  ours.  The  successs  of  our  scheme  for  sur- 
prising Louisbourg  will  intirely  depend  upon  the  Execution 
of  the  first  night  after  the  arrival  of  our  forces  there ;  and 
for  this  purpose  it  is  necessary  that  the  whole  fleet  should 
make  Chappeaurouse  point  just  at  the  shutting  in  of  the 
day,  when  they  can't  be  easily  discover'd,  and  from  thence 
push  into  the  Bay  so  as  to  have  all  the  men  landed  before 
twelve  at  night,  (the  landing  of  whom  by  Capt.  Durelle  and 
Mr.  Bastide  will  take  up  three  hours  at  least)  after  which 
the  forming  of  the  four  several  corps  to  be  employed  in 
attempting  to  scale  the  walls  of  Louisbourg  near  the  East 
Gate  fronting  the  sea,  the  West  Gate  fronting  the  Harbour, 
to  cover  the  retreat  of  the  two  beforementioned  parties 
in  case  of  a  repulse,  and  to  attack  the  Grand  Battery, 
(which  attack  must  be  made  at  the  same  time  with  the  two 
other  attacks)  will  take  up  two  hours  more  at  least,  and  after 
these  four  Bodies  are  form'd  their  march  to  their  respective 
ports  from  whence  they  are  to  make  their  attacks  and  serve 
[guns]  to  cover  the  retreat,  will  take  up  another  two  hours, 
wch  supposing  the  Transports  to  arrive  in  Chappeaurouse 
Bay  at  9  o'clock  in  the  evening  and  not  before,  as  it  is  not 
necessary  for  'em  to  do  in  order  to  land  and  march  under 
cover  of  the  night,  will  bring  'em  to  four  in  the  morning, 
being  day-break,  before  they  begin  their  attack,  wch  will 
be  full  late  in  the  morning  for  'em  to  begin :  Your  Excel- 
lency will  hence  perceive,  how  critical  an  affair  the  time 
of  the  fleets  arriving  in  Chappeaurouse  Bay  is,  and  how 
necessary  it  is  to  the  success  of  our  principal  scheme,  that 

^  Original,  Belknap  Papers,  N.  H.  Hist.  Society,  I,  214.  Printed : 
N.  H.  Prov.  Papers,  5,  938. 

190 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  fleet  should  arrive  there  in  a  body,  at  that  precise  hour 
and  how  dangerous  it  will  be  for  us  to  trust  to  the  chance 
of  meeting  at  the  Isles  of  Shoals.  Besides  this,  it  will  be 
necessary  that  our  Transports  should  be  divided  into  four 
Divisions,  each  wearing  distinct  colours,  and  that  the  several 
parties  of  Troops,  with  their  officers  appointed  to  these 
several  services,  should  embark  in  these  distinct  divisions 
and  land  together  in  separate  Bodies  out  of  'em,  in  order  to 
go  instantly  upon  the  Execution  of  their  respective  duties 
and  attacks  ;  for  otherwise  there  will  be  the  utmost  confu- 
sion, and  the  forming  of  'em  after  their  landing  will  consume 
so  much  time,  that  the  Execution  of  the  main  scheme  will 
be  impracticable  the  first  night,  after  wch  time  it  will  be  in 
vain  to  attempt  it :  And  I  do  not  see  how  the  Transport 
vessells  can  be  form'd  properly  into  these  Divisions  unless 
they  rendezvous  at  Nantasket,  or  the  officers  of  your  Regi- 
ment be  appris'd  thoroughly  of  the  Duty  they  are  to  go 
instantly  upon  immediately  after  their  landing,  without 
being  here  upon  the  Spot :  For  as  to  their  rendezvous  at 
Canso,  besides  so  large  a  fleet  being  in  danger  of  being  dis- 
cover'd  even  from  St.  Peter's  hill,  there  will  be  great  dan- 
ger of  some  fishing  vessell  or  others'  carrying  an  alarm  to 
the  enemy  before  our  arrival.  However  if  there  should  be 
an  unsurmountable  difficulty  in  the  Troops  rais'd  in  your 
Province  getting  round  here,  as  I  propose,  we  must  endeav- 
our to  join  as  we  pass  by  your  harbour  or  at  the  Isles  of 
Shoals  as  you  propose  upon  my  letting  you  have  a  day's 
notice  before  we  sail ;  and  as  I  will  send  you  a  copy  of  my 
orders  to  the  General,  wch  will  contain  a  plan  of  what  the 
Troops  are  to  execute  instantly  after  their  landing  &  of  the 
several  parts  wch  the  four  several  corps  are  to  execute,  I 
will  then  mention  the  part  proposed  to  be  allotted  to  your 
Regiment.   ... 

The  Transports  hired  here  are  by  a  vote  of  the  General 
Court  pass'd  this  morning  insur'd  by  the  Governmt,  and 
you  may  depend  that  the  Transports  taken  up  by  you  for 
carrying  the  men  in  the  pay  of  the  Governmt  rais'd  in  your 
Province  shall  be  insur'd  in  the  same  manner  at  their  ap- 

191 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLLVM  SHIRLEY 

priz'd  value,  wch  I  suppose  will  be  indisputable  security : 
The  subsistence  and  stores  I  will  take  care  of.  Let  the  150 
men  to  be  aggregated  to  your  Regiment  of  350,  be  raised 
by  you  in  what  companies  they  will  provided  the  officers 
do  not  exceed  the  number  of  officers  usual  to  three  Com- 
pany's I  will  accept  'em  and  provide  for  'em  with  the  pay 
of  this  Government ;  and  whatever  men  Mr.  Vaughan  shall 
raise  over  and  above  the  150  by  virtue  of  your  orders  (pro- 
vided they  do  not  exceed  150  more)  I  will  accept,  notwith- 
standing my  countermanding  my  orders  for  his  raising  more 
men  mentioned  in  my  last  to  you,^  wch  I  did  partly  upon  what 
you  mention'd  in  yours  of  the  27th  Feby  to  me.  It  will  be 
necessary  for  me  to  know  what  muskets.  Bayonets,  Cut- 
lasses, Belts  &c  will  be  wanting  for  such  of  the  men  rais'd 
within  your  Governmt  to  be  in  our  pay,  as  have  none  of 
their  own,  that  I  may  provide  'em.  We  take  care  that  all 
our  people  have  slings  to  their  muskets,  wch  (as  they  can't 
be  better  provided)  must  be  done  by  line  or  rope,  and  take 
particular  care  to  provide  Tents  for  all  our  Soldiers  with- 
out wch  it  will  be  impossible  for  the  men  to  subsist,  &  wch 
will  be  done  in  a  great  measure  by  old  sails  and  poles,  tho' 
we  have  upwards  of  100  new  ones  regularly  made,  besides 
Tents  for  the  army.  Be  pleas'd  to  let  Mr.  Vaughan  know 
he  may  go  on  as  far  as  I  have  mention'd  above ;  and  fa- 
vour me  with  your  Letters  by  all  opportunities. 
I  am  wth  great  Truth 

your  Excellencys  most 

obedient,  Humble  servant 
His  Excy  Govr  Wentworth.  W.  Shirley. 

^  In  his  letter  of  Mar.  i,  Shirley  had  stated  his  desire  that 
William  Vaughan  should  not  raise  over  one  hundred  and  fifty  men ; 
Wentworth's  letter  of  Feb.  27  expressed  a  fear  that  resort  might 
be  had  to  impressment,  a  fear  which  Shirley  hastened  to  allay. 


192 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL^ 

Province  of  the 
Massachusetts  Bay 

By  His  Excellency  the  Governour 

You  are  hereby  directed  to  give  out  Your  Orders  to  the 
Captains  of  the  several  Companies  raised  for  the  Expedi- 
tion now  in  the  Town  of  Boston  to  Embark  their  respec- 
tive Companies  on  board  such  Transport  Vessels  as  are 
provided  for  them,  and  as  the  Committee  for  the  War  shall 
direct  them  to  with  all  convenient  Speed. 

Given  under  my  Hand  at  Boston  the  Eighth  day  of 
March,  1744.  In  the  Eighteenth  Year  of  His  Majesty's 
Reign. 

-  W.  Shirley. 

To  William  Pepperrell  Esqr  Lieut. 
General  of  the  Forces  raised  for  the  Expedition 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  ROGER  WOLCOTT^ 

Boston,  March  8,  1744. 
Sir, 

Agreable  to  the  Proposal  made  to  me  from  the  Government 
of  Connecticut  by  Colo  Trumbal  &  Mr  Williams,^  I  have 
ordered  a  Commission  to  be  made  out  to  give  you  the  second 

^  Original,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  Vol.  61 
B,  p.  5. 

'^  Original,  Roger  Wolcott  Papers,  i,  64.  Printed  :  Conn.  Hist. 
Soc.  Coll.  II,  259. 

'  At  a  special  session  of  the  Connecticut  Assembly  In  February 
Jonathan  Trumbull  and  Ellsha  Williams  were  appointed  as  a  com- 
mittee to  confer  with  representatives  of  the  governments  of  other 
colonies  about  matters  relating  to  the  proposed  expedition.  Wil- 
liams had  been  at  the  head  of  Yale  College,  but  served  as  chap- 
lain in  the  Louisbourg  expedition  at  Pepperrell's  request.  Later 
in  the  month  Shirley  followed  this  letter  with  another,  in  which  he 
wrote  Wolcott : 

"Having  given  you  a  Commission  to  command  as  Major 
General  in  the  Forces  raised  within  this  Province  &  the  neighbouring 
Provinces  &  Colonies  for  the  Expedition  against  the  French  at 
VOL.  I  —  o  193 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Command  over  the  Forces  raised  for  the  Expedition  against 
Cape  Breton ;  Which  Commission  is  herewith  inclosed.  And 
from  my  personal  Knowledge  of  you  &  the  Character  you 
bear  of  those  Qualities  which  make  you  at  least  equal  to  this 
Trust,  I  do  with  the  utmost  Chearfulness  commit  it  to  you, 
&  wish  you  all  possible  Success  in  the  Discharge  of  it.  I 
doubt  not  but  you  will  do  your  utmost  to  have  the  Succours 
your  Governmt  sends  by  you  seasonably  join  our  Forces,  to 
prevent  any  Inconvenience  that  may  happen  by  a  Delay. 
I  am  Sir 

Your  most  obedient 
humble  Servant 
Roger  WolcottEsqr.  W.  Shirley. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL^ 

William  Shirley  Esqr  Captain  General  and  Governor 
In  Chief  in  and  over  his  Majesty's  Province  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Bay  in  New  England  in  America. 

To  William  Pepperrell  Esqr  Commander  in  Chief  of  the 
Forces  raised  for  the  Expedition  against  Cape  Breton, 

By  Virtue  of  the  Power  and  Authority  in  and  by  his 
Majesty's  Royal  Commission  to  me  granted,  &  pursuant  to 
the  Directions  contained  in  an  Act  made  and  pass'd  by  the 

Cape  Breton,  whereof  William  Pepperrell  Esqr  is  Lieutenant 
General  &  Commander  in  Chief;  I  do  hereby  direct  you  as  soon 
as  the  Auxiliary  Troops  from  the  Colony  of  Connecticut  which  are 
under  your  particular  Command  are  ready  &  embark'd  on  board 
their  respective  Transports,  with  them  forthwith  to  proceed  to 
Cape  Breton,  &  join  the  other  Forces  for  the  said  Expedition,  and 
there  you  must  follow  such  Orders  and  Directions  for  the  Annoy- 
ance of  the  Enemy  as  you  shall  from  time  to  time  receive  from  the 
said  Lleutt  General  Pepperrell."  (Roger  Wolcott  Papers,  i,  74.) 
1  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61  B,  p.  14.  Shir- 
ley's General  Instructions  to  Pepperrell  of  this  date  are  printed 
I  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  i,  5-1 1.  See  also  Shirley  to  Governor 
Law  of  Connecticut  (Mar.  15)  as  to  the  Louisbourg  expedition  and 
(Mar.  18)  as  to  defense  of  the  western  frontier.  Conn.  Hist.  Soc. 
Coll.  II,  264,  265.  On  Mar.  23  Shirley  sent  Pepperrell  a  list  of 
the  companies  arranged  by  regiments,  and  In  the  accompanying 

194 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Great  and  General  Court  or  Assembly  of  this  Province  at 
their  Session  begun  &  held  at  Boston  the  thirtieth  day  of 
May,  1744,  &  continued  by  Adjournment  to  the  ninth  of 
August  following,  entitled.  An  Act  for  punishing  of  Officers 
or  Soldiers  who  shall  mutiny  or  desert  his  Majesty's  Service, 
Reposing  special  Trust  and  Confidence  in  your  Loyalty, 
Skill  and  Prudence,  I  do  by  and  with  the  Advice  and  Con- 
sent of  his  Majesty's  Council,  commissionate  and  impower 
you  the  said  William  Pepperrell  from  time  to  time  as  Oc- 
casion may  require  to  call  and  assemble  Courts  Martial, 
of  the  Commission  Officers  in  his  Majesty's  Service  &  under 
Pay,  no  such  Court  to  consist  of  fewer  than  eleven  (whereof 
you  the  said  William  Pepperrell  always  to  be  one)  for  try- 
ing and  punishing  of  Officers  &  Soldiers  muster'd  and  in 
Pay  in  his  Majesty's  Service,  for  Mutiny,  Sedition  &  Deser- 
tion, or  other  Offences  according  to  the  Directions  of  said 
Act,  which  you  are  strictly  to  observe  in  all  your  Proceed- 
ings ;  And  all  Courts  Martial  to  be  called  and  assembled 
as  aforesd  are  hereby  authorized  &  impowered  to  appoint 
all  proper  &  necessary  Officers  unto  such  Courts  belonging. 
In  Testimony  whereof  I  have  caused  the  publick  Seal  of  the 
Province  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  aforesd  to  be  hereunto 
affixed ;  Dated  at  Boston  the  nineteenth  day  of  March 
1744,  in  the  eighteenth  Year  of  his  Majesty's  Reign. 

By  Order  of  the  Govr  with 
the  Advice  &  Consent  of  the  Council 
J   Willard   Secry 

Copy  as  of  Record  Attest. 

J  Willard  Secry 

letter  speaks  of  his  difficulties  in  the  assignment  of  commissions. 
Of  William  Vaughan,  Shirley  writes:  "I  desire  you  would  let 
Mr  Vaughan,  who  goes  a  voluntier  to  Cape  Breton  in  this  ex- 
pedition and  has  been  very  instrumental  in  promoting  it,  both 
within  this  and  the  neighbouring  province,  and  has  the  success  of 
it  much  at  heart,  assist  in  your  Councils,  and  I  do  hereby  appoint 
him  to  be  one  of  it.  Your  countenance  and  protection  of  him 
also,  as  far  as  is  proper,  I  shall  esteem  a  favour."  In  other  letters 
of  Mar.  24  and  25  detailed  instructions  regarding  Colonel  Brad- 
street  and  other  officers  are  given.  See  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll. 
10,  120-124.  195 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ' 

Boston,  New  England  27  March,  [1744]  1745. 

My  Lord  Duke, 

Since  my  last  to  your  Grace  I  have  raised  3200  Troops 
exclusive  of  Commission  Officers  for  his  Majesty's  Serv- 
ice in  the  present  Expedition  against  the  French  Settle- 
ments on  Cape  Breton,  2800  of  which  have  already  taken 
their  departure  and  the  remainder  are  embark'd,  and  will  I 
hope  sail  from  this  place  tomorrow.  At  Canso  the  place  of 
Rendezvous  they  will  be  joined  by  350  Troops  more  raised 
by  the  Governour  of  New  Hampshire,  which  I  understand 
have  likewise  sailed  and  will  be  followed  to  Cape  Breton 
by  500  more  troops  from  Connecticut  in  the  beginning  of 
next  month ;  And  Ten  days  ago  I  sent  three  good  ships 
of  20  Guns  each,  Two  Snows  of  16  Guns  each,  and  a  Brigan- 
tine  of  near  the  same  force,  all  well  manned  and  equipped, 
to  cruise  before  the  harbour  of  Louisbourg  in  order  to  in- 
tercept any  intelligence.  Recruits  or  Supplys,  which  might 
be  sent  to  the  Enemy  before  the  arrival  of  our  Forces  upon 
the  Island ;  these  will  be  joined  by  another  Snow  of  24 
Guns  and  other  arm'd  Vessels  of  less  force,  after  our  Troops 
are  landed,  and  are  all  in  the  Pay  of  this  Government, 
and  will  also  be  joined  by  the  Connecticut  Colony  Sloop 
upon  the  arrival  of  the  Forces  of  that  Government  at  Cape 
Breton ;  and  if  the  Government  of  Rhode  Island  raise  the 
150  men,  which  they  have  voted  for  this  Service  and  man  their 
Colony  Sloop,  upon  neither  of  which  I  absolutely  depend, 
there  will  be  that  addition  to  our  Land  and  sea  Armament,  — 
And  Embargoes  have  been  laid  on  all  shipping  in  the  four 
New  England  Governments,  and  strictly  observed  in  three  of 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  168.  On  the  same  day  Shirley  wrote 
the  Board  of  Trade  a  letter  similar  to  the  one  here  printed.  An 
abstract  of  additional  matter  contained  is  on  p.  199,  following  this 
letter  to  Newcastle. 

196 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

them,  to  prevent  the  Enemy's  haveing  any  intelligence  or 
provisions  carryed  to  them  from  these  parts. 

To  strengthen  the  before  mentioned  Naval  force  I  apply'd 
in  particular  to  Commodore  Warren  at  Antigua  for  the  assist- 
ance of  one  or  more  of  his  Majesty's  ships  from  the  Squad- 
ron under  his  command,  as  the  Service  in  those  parts 
would  admit,  acquainting  him  with  the  intended  Expedi- 
tion, and  that,  as  Mr  Duvivier  was  gone  from  Louisbourg 
to  old  France  for  Recruits  and  Supplies,  and  was  expected 
to  return  very  early  in  the  Spring,  it  would  be  of  the  utmost 
consequence  to  his  Majesty's  service  in  this  Enterprize 
that  we  should  be  assisted  by  him  in  time  to  block  up  the 
harbour  of  Louisbourg  and  cut  off  the  Enemy's  expected 
recruits  and  supplies  from  old  France,  which  if  we  could  ob- 
tain seasonably  for  that  purpose,  and  to  Encourage  our  own 
forces  upon  the  Appearance  of  the  King's  Ships,  as  well  as 
to  terrify  the  Enemy,  we  had  very  great  reason  to  hope  that 
our  Land  forces  would  be  able  to  carry  all  their  points  against 
the  Enemy  in  their  present  weak  Circumstances ;  This 
advice  I  sent  by  an  Express  Boat,  which  arrived  at  Antigua 
the  22d  of  February,  and  by  which  two  days  after  Mr  War- 
ren return'd  me  for  answer  that  he  had  received  orders  to 
attend  on  New  England  in  the  Weymouth  some  time  in 
March,  from  doing  which  he  was  prevented  by  the  unhappy 
Loss  of  that  Ship,  but  that  he  should  in  a  very  few  days 
dispatch  the  Launceston  to  attend  on  New  England  and  the 
Mermaid  to  New  York,  pursuant  to  his  directions  from  the 
Lords  of  Admiralty ;  The  Loss  of  the  Weymouth,  which 
has  hinderd  the  Commodore  from  following  his  Directions 
to  come  here  himself,  is  an  unhappy  misfortune  at  this 
Crisis ;  but  notwithstanding  that,  if  instead  of  sending  the 
Launceston  to  this  place  and  the  Mermaid  to  New  York 
he  had  been  pleased  to  have  Dispatch'd  them  both  di- 
rectly to  Cape  Breton,  to  have  join'd  the  other  Ships  there 
in  blocking  up  Louisbourg  Harbour,  as  I  pressed  him  in 
my  Letter  to  do,  and,  I  suppose,  he  might  unquestionably 
have  done,  consistent  with  his  orders,  there  is  no  room  to 
doubt  but  that  Our  naval  Force  would  have  been  superiour 

197 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

to  what  Mr  Duvivier  may  probably  be  expected  to  bring 
with  him  from  France  early  in  the  Spring  to  convoy  the 
recruits  and  Supplies  for  Louisbourg,  (and  perhaps  after- 
wards to  attack  Annapolis  Royal)  especially  if  we  had  been 
assisted  by  his  Majesty's  Ship  the  Bien  Amy  Prize  now  in 
this  harbour,  and  which  was  ordered  hither  by  Mr  Knowles, 
partly  to  load  with  masts  of  a  proper  size  and  Dimensions 
for  repairing  the  ships  of  the  Squadron  at  Jamaica,  some  of 
which,  by  means  of  the  Hurricane  there  in  October  last 
must  be  greatly  in  want  of  them,  and  which  Mr  Knowles 
was  informed  could  not  be  got  ready  here  'till  the  beginning 
of  July,  so  that  that  ship  might  in  the  meantime  have  cruised 
before  Louisbourg  till  the  middle  of  May,  which  I  also  re- 
quested of  Mr  Warren ;  but  instead  of  being  permitted  to 
do  it  Mr  Knowles  thereupon  dispatch'd  orders  for  the  Bien 
Amy  Prize  to  return  to  Antigua  instantly  without  staying 
for  masts  fit  for  repairing  the  Jamaica  ships,  that  suffered 
in  the  Hurricane,  which  seems  to  have  a  Tendency  to  dis- 
appoint the  service  at  Jamaica  as  well  as  the  Expedition ; 
whereas  had  my  request  of  the  assistance  of  that  Ship  been 
allowed  it  would  have  answered  both  Services. 

Thus  we  have  been  unhappily  disappointed  of  such  Assist- 
ance from  Mr  Warren's  Squadron,  (which  with  respect  to  the 
Launceston  that  is  appointed  for  the  Service  of  New  Eng- 
land we  seem  to  have  a  plain  right  to  have  had)  as  would 
in  all  human  probability  have  secur'd  success  to  our  at- 
tempt against  the  Enemy  under  their  present  low  Circum- 
stances :  And  what  turn  it  may  give  to  the  Event  of  the 
Expedition  is  uncertain.  I  shall  hope  that  Providence  will 
favour  the  small  Naval  Force,  which  I  have  been  able  to 
muster  up  here,  with  Success  ;  and  that  our  Land  Forces 
will  still  be  able  to  maintain  their  ground  on  Cape  Breton 
'till  I  shall  receive  his  Majesty's  Royal  Pleasure  upon  this 
matter :  In  the  meantime  I  have  endeavoured  to  provide 
a  Retreat  for  our  Vessels  and  Forces  at  Canso  against  all 
Events,  and  at  least  to  secure  the  other  points  of  preserv- 
ing Annapolis  Royal  from  any  sudden  early  attempts  against 
it  before  the  arrival  of  the  recruits  from  England,  destroy- 

198 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ing  one  or  both  of  the  principal  Batteries  of  the  harbour  of 
Louisbourg,  breaking  up  the  Enemy's  small  Settlements 
upon  that  Island  and  in  the  neighbouring  parts,  (which 
are  numerous)  and  by  that  means  ruining  their  fishery 
there  for  sometime,  and  beginning  a  resettlement  at  Canso, 
and  recovering  the  English  Fishery  there,  in  case  his  Majesty 
shall  be  pleased  to  garrison  Canso  again,  and  protect  it  by 
one  Station  ship  as  usual  in  time  of  Peace ;  the  Gaining  of 
all  which,  though  the  attempt  against  the  Town  of  Louis- 
bourg it  self  should  fail,  or  his  Majesty  should  not  be  pleased 
to  support  the  Expedition  with  any  Ships  and  Marines  from 
England,  will  yet  promote  his  service  in  other  points  of  such 
importance,  as  may  answer  the  Expence,  which  this  Enter- 
prize  will  occasion,  and  I  hope  will  not  be  disapprov'd  of  by 
His  Majesty,  as  the  Motive  for  my  Engaging  in  this  Expe- 
dition was  my  Zeal  for  His  Majesty's  Service  and  the  in- 
terest of  his  British  Dominions  in  the  first  place  &  next  to 
that  for  promoting  the  particular  Interests  of  this  Prov- 
ince and  his  other  northern  Colonies. 
I  am  with  the  most  dutifuU  regards 
My  Lord  Duke 

Your  Grace's  most  obedient  and 
most  devoted  humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley.^ 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 
Endorsed : 

New  England.  March  27,  1745 
Govr  Shirley 
B  June  3d        Dupte 

^  In  a  letter  of  the  same  date  to  the  Board  of  Trade  (C.  O.  5, 
923,  p.  161)  Shirley  incloses  a  resolution  of  the  Council  and  Assembly 
of  Massachusetts  for  an  expedition  against  Cape  Breton,  and  ex- 
presses the  hope  that  the  King  will  support  it.  He  outlines  the 
great  advantages  of  Cape  Breton  to  the  French  and  the  hazard 
to  the  English  trade  while  it  remains  in  French  hands.  The 
Governor  then  states  the  danger  the  northern  settlements  are  in 
from  the  French  so  long  as  they  possess  Cape  Breton,  and  the  loss 
to  French  trade  with  Canada  resulting  from  the  conquest  of  Cape 
Breton,  as  in  his  letter  of  Jan.  14  on  p.  161. 

199 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   WILLIAM  GREENE  ^ 

Boston,  March  28,  1744. 
Sir, 

I  am  informed  that  your  Governmt  have  agreed  to  raise 
150  Men  for  the  Expedition  against  Cape  Breton  and  to 
send  your  Colony  Sloop  in  the  same  Service,  and  as  the  Gov- 
ernmt of  Connecticut  will  have  their  Forces  ready  early  in 
the  next  month  &  are  solicitous  for  their  getting  safe  to  Cape 
Breton  I  cannot  but  think  it  will  be  for  the  Convenience  of 
both  Governmts  if  you  could  join  your  Forces  &  proceed 
together  upon  this  Voyage,  and  in  case  anything  should  hin- 
der your  raising  the  Forces  proposed,  yet  I  hope  you  will 
think  it  necessary  for  His  Majesty's  Service  to  send  your 
Colony  Sloop  for  the  safeguard  of  the  troops  from  Con- 
necticut. 

I  am  Sir 

Your  Honours  most  humble  &  obedient  Servt 

W.  Shirley. 
P.S. 
Sir, 

I  hope  if  you  cannot  otherwise  man  your  Sloop,  you  will 
not  scruple  upon  this  extraordinary  Occasion  to  impress 
Seamen  as  this  Governmt  has  done,  &  if  it  should  happen 
that  the  150  Land  Forces  are  not  raised  pursuant  to  the 
Vote  of  your  Assembly  Your  Honour  will  at  least  make  up 
the  complement  of  your  Colony  Sloop  130  men  as  at  first 
voted. 

Honble  William  Green  Esq.  or  in  his  absence 
the  Honble  Joseph  Whipple  Esq. 

iR.  I.  Col.  Rec.  s,  133. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   ROGER   WOLCOTT^ 

^  Boston,  March  30,  1744. 

Inclos'd  are  my  orders  to  you  to  proceed  to  Cape  Breton 
with  the  forces  under  your  particular  Command  from  Con- 
necticutt,  in  doing  wch  if  you  judge  proper  to  touch  at 
Canso  in  your  way  for  Intelligence  it  may  not  be  amiss. 
I  am  sorry  it  is  not  in  my  power  to  procure  you  the 
Convoy  of  Captn  Gayton's  Ship  ^  for  your  Transport 
Vessells,  as  you  desire,  that  Ship  being  order'd  to  go 
to  Antegoa  and  from  thence  directly  to  Jamaica  wth 
Maps  for  the  Jamaica  Squadron  .  .  .  About  fourteen 
days  ago  I  sent  three  ships  of  twenty  Guns  each,  two 
Snows  of  Sixteen  Guns  each  and  a  Brig  of  near  the  same 
force  to  cruize  before  Louisbourg  Harbour,  wch  I  am  in 
hopes  may  intercept  any  Intelligence,  provisions,  or  recruits, 
wch  the  Enemy  may  expect  to  arrive  early  to  'em  :  And 
our  Forces  sailed  under  the  Convoy  of  Captn  Rous's  Snow 
only,  wch  I  doubt  not  is  sufficient  between  this  place  and 
Cape  Breton,  as  we  have  so  many  Vessells  before  it,  and  wch 
will  be  join'd  by  Rous  after  our  Forces  are  landed  on  the 
Island  wth  the  New  Hampshire  Troops,  wch  I  expect  will 
be  on  Monday  or  Tuesday  next  if  no  extraordinary  Acci- 
dent prevents  'em ;  I  hope  therefore  there  is  no  Danger  of 
your  meeting  with  any  thing  in  your  way,  wch  your  own 
Colony  sloop  will  not  sufficiently  protect  you  agt ;  How- 
ever I  have  wrote  to  the  Governour  of  Rhode  Island  in  the 
strongest  Terms  I  can,  to  engage  him  to  order  His  Colony's 
Sloop  to  join  you,  as  Col  Lothrop  will  inform  you  ;  tho  I 
must  confess  I  have  no  great  Dependance  upon  that  Govern- 
ment in  this  Expedition.  I  heartily  wish  you  all  Imagi- 
nable success  and  am     Sir 

Your  faithfull  Humble  servant 

W.  Shirley. 

^Original,  Law  Papers,  i,  372.  Printed:  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll. 
II,  272.  See  Shirley  to  Wolcott  of  Mar.  8  {ante^  p.  193)  for  noti- 
fication of  command.  ^  The  Bien  Aime. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

I  must  refer  you  to  Col  Lothrop  ^  for  the  behaviour  of 
Lieutent  Col  Eveleth,  Captn  Byles,  Captn  Davis,  &  Captn 
Baker  in  leaving  the  Squadron  Fleet  and  putting  in  to  Cape 
Ann  'till  Wensday  last  and  permitting  their  Men  to  go  on 
shoar  all  of  'em  except  Captn  Baker  who  did  not  behave 
so  ill  as  the  rest ;  Col  Eveleth  &  Captn  Byles  are  most 
to  blame  pray  acquaint  the  General  with  it,  some  notice 
shd  be  taken  of  'em. 

Major  Genl  Woolcott. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   GENERAL    COURT 
OF   MASSACHUSETTS 

[Extracts^] 

Gentlemen  of  the  Council  and  House  of  Represen- 
tatives,    ; 

In  Pursuance  of  the  Resolution  of  this  Court  for  forming 
an  Expedition  against  the  French  Settlements  on  Cape 
Breton,  pass'd  the  25th  of  January  last,  which  is  agreeable 
to  His  Majesty's  Pleasure  signifi'd  to  me  upon  the  present 
Rupture  with  France  :  "  That  I  should  take  all  Opportu- 
nities, as  far  as  is  depended  upon  me,  to  distress  and  annoy 
the  French  in  their  Settlement,  Trade  and  Commerce"  I 
have  raised  three  Thousand  Voluntiers,  under  proper  Offi- 
cers to  be  employed  in  His  Majesty's  Service  upon  that  Expe- 
dition ;  two  Thousand  eight  Hundred  of  which,  by  the  24th 
Day  of  last  Month,  and  the  Remainder  within  two  Days  after, 
were  embarqued  and  sailed  for  Canso  where  they  were  to  be 
join'd  with  three  Hundred  and  fifty  Troops  more  rais'd 
by  the  Government  of  New  Hampshire  for  the  same  serv- 

^  Simon  Lothrop,  Lieutenant  Colonel  of  the  Connecticut  regi- 
ment, commissioned  Mar.   i,   1744/5. 

'  Massachusetts  Archives,  Court  Records,  Vol.  17,  pt.  4,  p. 
713.  Copies  of  this  speech  were  sent  by  Shirley  to  various  Pro- 
vincial governors  in  answer  to  letters  regarding  the  expedition, 
e.g.  to  Governor  Law  of  Connecticut  in  Shirley's  letter  of  Apr.  8, 
Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  11,  278. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ice,  upon  my  Application  to  Governour  Wentworth  ... 
to  be  followed  some  time  this  Week  by  live  Hundred  Troops 
more  from  Connecticut,  rais'd  likewise  for  the  same  Service 
by  that  Government,  upon  my  Application  to  them.^  — 

The  Governor  then  sets  forth  the  extent  of  his  naval 
preparations,  the  probability  of  aid  from  England  and  from 
Commodore  Warren  in  the  South  by  reason  of  orders  given 
from  London  and  concludes  :  —  The  warm  Assurances  I  have 
receiv'd  from  His  Majesty's  Governours  in  the  Colonies  of 
New  York,  the  Jerseys  and  Pennsylvania  of  their  most 
hearty  Endeavours  to  engage  the  Colonies  under  their  re- 
spective Governments  in  the  Support  of  the  common  Cause 
upon  this  Occasion,  have  given  me  good  Encouragement  to 
proceed  in  this  Expedition,  towards  securing  the  Success 
whereof,  I  immediately  receiv'd  from  Governour  Clinton, 
upon  my  Request  to  him  for  that  Purpose,  a  considerable 
Train  of  Artillery,  without  which  we  could  not  have  had 
the  same  Prospect  of  reducing  the  Island  as  we  now  have. 

W.  Shirley. 
Council  Chamber,  April  3d.  1745 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  2 

•    Boston,  April  8th,  1745. 
Sir, 

1  should  be  oblig'd  to  you  if  you  would  let  me  know  by 
the  next  post  your  sentiments  upon  our  undertaking,  in  con- 
junction with  the  neighboring  Governments,  an  Expedition 
against  Canada  this  year,  in  case  of  our  succeeding  against 
Cape  Breton ;  that  you  would  communicate  to  me  what  you 
think  would  be  the  most  advisable  scheme  for  doing  It ;  what 
the  most  proper  season;    by  what  time  at  latest  it  should 

^  Good  accounts  of  the  preparations  made  In  New  Hampshire 
and  Connecticut  are  In  letters  to  Shirley  from  Gcvernor  Went- 
worth, Mar.  21  (6  Mass.  Hist,  Soc,  Coll.  10,  120),  and  Governor 
Law,  Mar.  30  (Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  11,  270). 

2  Original,  Belknap  Papers,  N.  H.  Hist.  Soc,  i,  220;  N.  H.  Prov. 
Papers,  5,  949. 

203 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

be  begun,  and  how  long  time  it  would  take  to  march  our 
Forces  there,  and  when  it  would  be  necessary  for  'em  to  re- 
tire on  account  of  the  season  of  the  year;  &  whether  it  is 
practicable  to  march  a  sufficient  number  of  forces  by  Land, 
and  transport  a  sufficient  Quantity  of  provisions  for  such 
an  enterprise,  as  also  artillery  and  stores,  and  what 
number  of  men  you  think  might  be  necessary  for 
such  purpose,  also  what  number  of  Regular  Troops  and 
militia  the  Enemy  can  probably  muster  to  oppose  our  army. 
And  particularly,  whether  such  an  attempt  can  be  pru- 
dently made  without  first  making  ourselves  masters  of 
Crown  point,  and  how  practicable  that  may  be,  with  the 
manner  of  doing  it,  and  what  supports  we  should  want  from 
home  to  enable  us  to  subdue  the  country;  also  in  particu- 
lar, whether  it  is  not  very  practicable  to  break  up  all  the 
enemy's  settlements  in  the  country,  and  oblige  'em  to  fly 
into  Montreal  or  Quebeck,  and  whether  the  effect  of  that, 
if  it  should  be  repeated  two  years,  and  they  were  cut  off 
from  all  supplies  by  sea  from  old  France,  would  not  be  to 
subdue  'em  by  famine  or  extreme  distress,  supposing  our 
Forces  should  not  penetrate  so  far  as  Montreal  or  Quebeck ; 
And  that  you  would  send  me  your  sentiments  as  particu- 
larly upon  every  circumstance  concerning  the  affair  as  if 
it  was  expressly  mentioned  here  and  put  to  you.  I  am  in- 
form'd  that  Mr.  Atkinson  is  the  most  capable  of  advising 
in  this  matter  of  any  man  in  America.  I  should  be  glad 
if  your  Excellency  would  consult]  with  him  concerning  it  as 
far  as  you  shall  think  proper. 

I  have  heard  nothing  further  of  Commodore  Warren,  so  am 
in  hopes  he  has  been  off  Cape  Breton,  for  some  time  past. 
I  am  with  much  esteem, 

Sir,  your  Excys  most  obedient 

Humble  servant 

W.  Shirley.^ 

*  This  letter  is  printed  here  to  show  the  energy  of  Shirley.  It 
gives  the  reader  ample  preparation  for  the  Massachusetts  Govern- 
or's plans  of  1746  for  wider  conquests  in  Canada.  See  Went- 
worth's  reply,  Apr.   12,  on  p.  206. 

204 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

His  Excy  Bennlng  Wentworth,  Esq. 

I  shall  find  time,  I  hope,  by  next  post  to  write  to  your 
Excellency  upon  our  other  affairs,  as  I  shall  then  have  got 
rid  of  my  Despatches  by  a  ship  to  go  from  hence  this  week 
to  London. 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY  TO   WILLIAM    PEPPERRELL 

[Extracts  ^] 

Boston,  April  lo,  1745. 
Sir, 

Having  heard  nothing  further  from  Commodore  Warren, 
I  conclude  he  must  have  met,  upon  his  designed  passage, 
with  some  of  our  fleet;  and  thereupon  altered  his  course 
and,  instead  of  coming  to  Boston  with  the  three  of  his 
Majesty's  ships  under  his  command,  proceeded  directly  for 
Canso  or  Cape  Breton,^  where  I  hope  he  is  now  blocking 
up  the  enemy's  harbour,  in  conjunction  with  our  crulzers 
and  that  Mons.  Duvivier  will  soon  bring  us  an  account  of 
it  to  Boston.  It  is  a  general  observation,  that  the  land 
and  sea  forces,  when  joined  upon  the  same  expedition,  sel- 
dom or  never  agree,  but  I  am  persuaded  it  will  not  be  so 
between  you  and  Commodore  Warren,  as  any  misunder- 
standing between  you  might  prove  fatal  to  his  Majesty's 
service  in  the  expedition. 

^  *  *  iti  *  *  * 

I  am  in  hopes  the  Connecticut  forces  will  have  joined 
you  before  you  receive  this,  and  that  by  the  middle  of  next 
month,  if  not  sooner,  you  will  be  supported  from  England 
with  ships  and  marines,  or  other  troops  In  the  reduction  of 
Louisbourg,  if  that  shall  not  be  effected  before  the  arrival 

^Printed  in  full:  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  i,  19. 

^  A  letter  from  James  Skinner  of  Marblehead  Is  Inclosed  as  a 
postscript,  giving  an  account  of  meeting  Warren  on  his  way  to 
Cape  Breton  with  three  men  of  war. 

20s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  that  reinforcement,  which  I  pray  God  may  be  the  case ; 
In  the  meantime  nothing  shall  be  wanting  on  my  part,  to 
contribute  towards  it. 

With  most  ardent  wishes  for  your  success  and  prosperity, 
I  am,  Sir,  your  most  assured  friend, 
and  humble  servant, 

W.  Shirley. 


BENNING  WENTWORTH  TO  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY^ 

Portsmouth,  I2th  April,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  have  now  duly  considered  the  subject  of  your  favour 
of  the  8th  currt  respecting  a  future  conquest  against  the 
French  settlements  up  the  river  St  Lawrence,  in  case  we 
succeed  in  the  Reduction  of  Louisbourg,  which  if  we  are  not 
greatly  deceived  in  the  accounts  we  have  had  of  the  strength 
of  that  Garrison,  I  have  little  room  to  doubt  of. 

Capt.  Warren's  with  the  two  other  ships  arrived  before  that 
place,  before  they  were  Reinforced  from  old  France,  which 
I  conceive  must  be  the  case,  since  he  has  not  appear'd  in 
this  quarter. 

Granting  the  Reduction  of  Louisbourg,  I  am  quite  clear 
in  pursuing  the  conquest,  with  additional  Troops,  provided 
they  can  be  cover'd  with  a  proper  naval  force  to  secure  their 
Retreat,  as  high  up  as  Montreal,  in  which  there  will  be  no 
difficulty,  but  at  Quebec.  How  strong  that  may  be,  I  am 
not  able  to  discover;  the  other  settlements  on  the  River 
may  be  conquered  with  50  whale  boats  well  arm'd,  &  proper 
vessells  to  attend  them  on  our  way  up,  or  in  coming  down 
as  may  be  thought  most  prudent.  Mr.  Atkinson  is  the  only 
person  in  the  Government  that  can  give  me  the  least  infor- 

^  Original,  Belknap  Papers,  N.  H.  Hist.  Soc,  i,  221.  N.  H.  Prov. 
Papers,  5,  950.  Although  this  manuscript  is  neither  addressed  nor 
signed,  it  is  endorsed  as  a  copy  of  a  letter  to  Governor  Shirley, 
and  its  subject  matter,  when  taken  in  connection  with  that  gov- 
ernor's manuscript  of  Apr.  8,  on  p.  203,  seems  to  show  that  it  is 
from  Governor  Wentworth. 

206 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

mation  on  this  head,  &  he  thinks  4000  effective  men  a  suffi- 
cient force  to  go  against  Quebec,  &  from  what  he  was  able 
to  learn  of  the  strength  of  that  Town  when  at  Montreal,  he 
thinks  the  conquest  very  Easily  made,  tho'  we  should  not 
have  the  assistance  of  Brittish  troops,  provided  we  had 
men  of  war  to  guard  the  River  and  to  secure  the  Retreat  of 
our  Forces ;  between  Quebec  and  Montreal  there  is  only 
one  Town  fortified,  which  is  called  the  Three  Rivers,  but  can 
make  little  resistance.  Montreal  when  he  was  there,  might 
be  taken  with  500  men,  having  no  walls  or  cannon  capable 
of  resisting  a  stout  privateer.  The  River  will  admit  of 
vessels  from  50  to  150  Tons,  quite  to  the  banks  of  the  River 
on  which  the  Town  of  Montreal  is  built.  The  proper  time 
for  our  troops  to  leave  that  Country  is  the  latter  end  of 
Sept.  or  early  in  October  —  and  the  time  of  being  there 
must  be  so  early  as  to  prevent  the  Enemy  from  gathering 
in  their  Harvest,  by  which  means  the  out  settlements,  wch 
are  not  many  must  flee  to  fort  Shamblea,  which  is  a  strong 
Fort  but  must  be  soon  given  up  &  abandoned  for  want  of 
provisions,  if  many  of  the  inhabitants  should  flee  thither 
from  Montreal,  which  must  be  the  case  when  they  are 
besieged ;  and  upon  the  Enemy's  abandoning  Shamblea 
there  is  no  refuge  but  Crown  Point  fort,  whither  they  can 
get  by  Canoes,  &  the  help  of  two  small  vessels  that  were 
built  in  the  lake,  and  armed  to  transport  troops,  provisions 
&  war-like  stores  to  Crown  Point  fort. 

Upon  our  success  at  Cape  Breton,  if  the  Governments  as  far 
as  Philadelphia  would  heartily  &  speedily  unite  in  this  grand 
enterprise  I  am  convinced  the  Reduction  of  Louisburg  would 
so  dispirit  the  Enemy  that  we  might  make  an  intire  conquest 
of  the  French  in  North  America  &  then  the  French  war  would 
be  the  happiest  war  New  England  ever  engaged  in. 

The  greatest  difficulty  that  at  present  occurs  to  me  is  the 
want  of  good  arms  —  which  I  can  see  no  prospect  to  be 
supply'd  with. 

But  as  the  progress  of  this  undertaking  depends  wholy 
in  my  opinion  on  our  success  at  Cape  Breton,  I  shall  only 
say  that  it  is  my  fixed  opinion,  that  upon  the  first  notice 

207 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  our  success  every  hand  &  every  heart  should  be  Im- 
ploy'd  in  pursuing  the  conquest  to  Montreal,  having  no  re- 
gard to  Shamblea  or  Crown  Point  Fort  wch  must  of  conse- 
quence fall  into  our  hands  for  the  reason,  that  if  the  Enemy 
should  not  flee  to  those  forts  for  safety,  we  could  easily  drive 
such  numbers  thither  as  must  necessarily  oblige  them  soon 
to  surrender,  or  starve  by  famine. 

I  am,  Sir,  . 

Your  Excellency's 
most  faithful  & 

Obedt  humb  servt 

Endorsed:  Copy  of  a  letter  to  Gr  Shirley  on  carrying  the 
conquest  after  the  Reduction  of  Louisbourg  to  Quebeck  &c. 

1745- 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL  ^ 

Boston,  April  23,  1745. 
Sir, 

Yesterday  I  dispatched  a  Vessell  loaded  with  provisions, 
a  Sloop  Captn  Bradford  Master,  to  Canso  wth  orders  to  the 
Commandant  there  to  forward  her  to  you  together  wth  some 
packets  for  you  and  the  Commodore :  And  the  Wind,  and 
Weather  being  very  inviting  to  day,  a  second  Sloop  Load  of 
provisions  will  sail  this  afternoon,  wch  I  have  sent  Orders 
to  the  Commandant  at  Canso  to  dispose  of  according  to 
such  Orders  as  he  has  or  shall  receive  from  you,  and  if  he  has 
none  concerning  the  provisions  he  shall  receive,  to  keep  the 
provisions  at  Canso,  and  forward  the  packet  he  shall  receive 
with  this  by  the  first  Opportunity  without  loss  of  time, 
desiring  your  Orders  upon  this  Sloop  Load  instantly :  wch 
method  I  thought  best,  as  I  apprehend  the  Cruizers  will 
go  oft  to  Canso  for  fresh  supplies  of  provisions,  when  they 
want  'em.     You  will  be  pleased  to  regulate  that  matter  by 

*  Original,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  Vol.  61  B, 
p.  21.  Other  letters  to  Pepperrell  on  same  subject  are  in  61  B, 
20;    61  B,  24  and  (printed)  in  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  T27. 

208 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

your  Orders  concerning  the  provisions  in  general  to  the 
Commandant  at  Canso  for  the  future.  On  Thursday 
morning  I  hope  to  get  Captain  Gayton  away,  who  will  bring 
under  his  Convoy  another  Sloop  load  of  provisions  for  you. 
The  Committee  seem  to  me  to  compute  the  number  of  Lands- 
men and  Seamen  in  the  Service  of  this  Government  at  4000 ; 
whereas  they  are  at  least  4500,  wch  I  will  observe  to  'em 
accordingly. 

I  shall  write  by  the  Sloop  under  Captn  Gayton's  Convoy 
and  am  with  best  Wishes  and  prayers  for  your  Success  and 
prosperity 

Sir 

Your  most  Faithful!  friend 

and  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Lieutent  General  Pepperill. 


JOHN  STODDARD!  TO   WILLIAM   SHIRLEY 

[Extracts^] 

North  Hampton,  April  24,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  having  no  prospect  of  an  Opportunity  speedily  have  sent 
a  man  to  carry  my  Letters.  I  have  waited  several  days 
expecting  News  from  Albany.  Capt  Shelden  returned  from 
thence  Yesterday,  but  brought  me  no  Letters.  He  tells  me 
that  Mr  Lydius  purposed  this  week  to  write  to  me  concern- 
ing the  Difficulties  they  have  about  the  Six  Nations,  &  the 
danger  of  loosing  them. 

*  John  Stoddard  was  one  of  the  most  important  of  Shirley's 
military  supports.  During  his  lifelong  residence  in  Northampton 
he  was  colonel,  commander  In  chief  of  the  Western  Department 
of  Massachusetts,  representative,  councilor,  justice  of  the  common 
pleas  and  superior  courts,  and  was  frequently  employed  In  negotia- 
tions with  the  Indians.  He  died  June  15,  1748,  in  his  sixty-seventh 
year. 

'^  Original,  Law  Papers,  i,  371.  Printed:  Conn.  Hist.  Soc. 
Coll.   II,  282, 

VOL.  I  —  p  209 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Capt  Shelden  tells  me  that  those  Nations  have  not  hunted 
this  Spring,  neither  are  they  likely  to  plant,  their  Chiefs  are 
going  to  Canada  to  wait  on  the  Govr  &  notwithstanding  all 
the  Commissioners  can  say  to  them  there  still  remains  a 
Suspicion  that  the  English  &  Dutch  had  formed  a  Design  to 
destroy  them  &  besides  what  the  Governour  of  Canada  has 
said  to  them,  Some  English  or  Dutchman  has  told  them  that 
we  had  designed  their  Ruin,  but  the  Commissioners  (for 
some  reason)  had  declined  to  enquire  of  them  who  it  was. 
These  people  are  very  numerous,  &  if  they  should  be  drawn 
to  the  French  Interest  they  will  be  worse  to  us  than  all 
Canada. 

It  seems  to  me  unsafe  for  us  to  lie  still  &  use  no  Endeavours 
to  free  them  from  their  Jealousies,  they  are  so  distrustful  of 
the  Dutch  that  it  may  be  difficult  for  them  to  pacify  those 
Nations. 

I  propose  to  your  Excellency  whether  it  would  not  be  worth 
while  to  send  Capt  Martin  Kellog  of  Newington  amongst 
them,  he  is  a  man  of  Good  understanding,  has  formerly  been 
very  conversant  amongst  them,  he  speaks  their  Language, 
and  I  can't  but  hope  that  his  going  may  have  a  good  effect  at 
this  Critical  Conjuncture. 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   WILLIAM    PEPPERRELL 

[Extracts  ^  ] 

Boston,  April  26,  1745. 
Sir, 

The  bearer  John  Stinson,  master  of  the  sloop  Philadelphia, 
carries  another  load  of  provisions  to  the  commandant  at 
Canso  for  the  use  of  the  forces  under  your  command,  concern- 
ing wch  I  have  sent  orders  to  the  commandant  at  Canso  that 
he  should  forward  it  to  you  at  Cape  Breton  by  the  first  safe 
conveyance,  unless  he  should  have  receiv'd  other  orders  from 
you,  in  which  case  I  have  directed  him  to  follow  them.     I 

^  Original,  Pepperrell  Papers.  Printed  :  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll. 
10,  127.  .  . 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

hope  you  will  take  particular  care  to  keep  up  a  most  frequent 
correspondence  between  yourself  and  Commodore  Warren 
and  me.  Since  my  last  I  have  appriz'd  the  Committee  of 
War  that  they  must  compute  the  number  of  men  in  the  army 
and  on  board  the  fleet  at  4400  at  least ;  and  have  obtain'd 
from  the  Assembly  before  their  dissolution  yesterday  a  vote 
impowering  the  Committee  to  purchase  and  send  you  pro- 
visions for  one  month  more  over  and  above  the  four  months 
they  were  impowered  to  purchase  provisions  for  before ;  so 
that  now  you  are  secure  of  having  five  months  provisions 
reckoning  from  the  beginning  of  the  expedition.  This  is 
the  third  sloop's  load  of  provisions  wch  will  have  been  sent 
to  Canso  since  the  news  of  your  arrival  there. 

I  have  put  50  more  barrells  of  powder  for  you  on  board 
Capt  Gayton  who  is  equipp'd  and  full  mann'd  after  infinite 
trouble  in  getting  it  done,  &  will,  I  hope,  sail  by  Sunday 
morning  at  furthest.  ...  I  believe  some  [match]  is  made,  and 
what  is  you  shall  have  and  every  thing  else  necessary  for  your 
support  in  my  power,  who  am  with  the  most  ardent  wishes 
for  your  success  and  prosperity, 
Sir, 

Your  faithfull  friend  and  servant. 

W.  Shirley. 

A  fourth  sloop  is  loading  wth  provisions,  and  I  will  call 
upon  the  Committee  every  day  for  an  acct  of  their  proceed- 
ings. 
Lieutenant  General  Pepperill. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  JONATHAN   LAW  ^ 

Boston,  Apr.  27,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  wrote  to  your  Honour  the  eighteenth  of  March  last  to 
move  you  to  send  Succours  from  your  Government  into  the 
County  of  Hampshire,  to  which  you  sent  me  a  favourable 

^  Original,  Law  Papers,  i,  361.  Printed  :  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll. 
II,  283,     Shirley's  letter  of  Mar,  18  is  in  ibid.  p.  265. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Answer  But  I  understand  the  Matter  is  not  yet  complied 
with  :  I  refer  you  to  my  Letter  for  the  reasons  of  my  pressing 
this  Matter  as  a  thing  of  the  greatest  moment.  I  have  lately 
received  Advices  from  Colo  Stoddard  which  I  now  inclose  to 
you,  which  represent  the  State  of  Our  Affairs  to  be  such  as 
to  require  your  immediate  Assistance.  And  you  will  give 
me  Leave  to  tell  your  Honour  that  if  your  Succours  are  to  be 
raised  &  sent,  after  any  Blow  is  struck,  It  will  be  of  little 
Service  in  Comparison  of  a  Force  ready  upon  the  Spot  to 
receive  &  repel  the  Enemy,  I  must  therefore  repeat  my 
Insistence  that  no  Time  may  be  lost  but  that  your  Succours 
may  be  sent  into  the  County  of  Hampshire  as  soon  as  possible 
I  am  Sir, 

Your  Honour's 

Most  Humble  Servt 

W.  Shirley. 
The  honble  Jonathan  Law  Esqr 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  JONATHAN  LAW^ 

Boston,  April  27,  1745. 
Sir, 

Having  by  means  of  one  Robert  Clarke  the  Bearer  got 
Intelligence  that  John  Scions,  Joseph  Boyce,  and  one  Bos- 
worth  conceal  themselves  at  and  near  a  Place  called  the  Ob- 
long in  New  York  Government  &  sometimes  in  your  Govern- 
ment that  borders  thereupon  occasions  my  present  Writing 
to  your  Honour. 

They  are  men  that  have  been  Guilty  of  enormous  Crimes 
in  this  Government  having  been  two  of  them  tried  and  con- 
victed at  Salem  for  forging  &  Emitting  Counterfeit  Bills  of 
Credit  &  upon  praying  the  Same  had  the  Benefit  of  their 
Clergy  ^  allowed  them  since  which  upon  perpetrating  fresh 
Crimes  of  the  like  Nature  they  were  taken  &  Committed  to 

^  Original,  Law  Papers,  i,  375.  Printed:  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll. 
II,  284.     See  Law  to  Shirley,  June  19,  post,  p.  230. 

*  In  old  English  law  the  exemption  of  ecclesiastics  or  persons  in 
orders  from  the  jurisdiction  of  other  than  ecclesiastical  courts. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Salem  Gaol  from  whence  they  escaped  &  have  for  the  most 
part  with  their  Associates  &  others  that  joined,  ever  since 
continued  the  like  Practices  so  as  to  be  a  Pest  to  this  &  the 
Adjoining  Government. 

It  is  expected  they  will  be  taken  in  New  York  Govern- 
ment or  Yours  and  the  Bearer  who  has  been  so  instrumental 
in  discovering  them  is  resolved  to  Act  every  thing  in  his 
power  for  the  taking  &  convicting  of  them  &  therefore  what 
is  in  your  Power  for  countenancing,  protecting  or  Assisting 
him  in  the  Doing  thereof  without  Question  will  be  complyed 
with  on  your  part.  The  Heads  of  this  Confederacy  have 
been  bold  &  daring  in  their  Villanies  and  have  practised  the 
same  hitherto  with  so  much  success  that  it  will  be  next  to 
impossible  to  Suppress  this  great  Mischief  without  Sup- 
pressing them  and  therefore  what  is  in  your  Power  to  do 
towards  it  without  Question  will  be  complyed  with 
I  am  your  Honour's 

W.  Shirley. 
The  honble  Jonathan  Law  Esqr 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  GREENE  ^ 

Boston,  May  3,  1745. 
Sir, 

The  occasion  of  this  Letter  is  something  that  has  lately 
happened  in  the  County  of  Bristol,  which  tends  much  to  the 
obstruction  of  His  Majesty's  Service  in  this  Province. 

I  gave  orders  to  Col.  Bowen  and  Col.  Willis  to  impress  a 
number  of  men  out  of  their  respective  Regiments  for  the 
defence  of  the  Frontiers  of  this  Province,  and  the  said  orders 
were  executed  accordingly,  but  the  greatest  number  of  [the] 
Men  that  were  impressed  absconded  after  their  impressment 
which  is  contrary  to  the  Laws  of  this  Province,  and  many  of 
them  are  supposed  to  be  retired  into  Your  Government. 

^  Printed  :  R.  I.  Col.  Records,  5,  134.  The  warrant  to  Colonel 
Bowen  for  impressment  is  in  Boston  Public  Library  of  date 
Apr.  20,  1745. 

ai3 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

I  need  not  take  much  pains  to  show  Your  Honour  of  what 
pernicious  consequence  it  must  be,  if  these  Men  should  meet 
with  the  least  encouragement  within  your  Governmt ;  A  few 
days  delay  may  cost  the  lives  of  many  innocent  people  on  the 
frontiers,  that  now  want  the  protection  of  this  Governmt. 
I  have  inclosed  a  list  of  those  mens  names  belonging  to  Col. 
Bowen's  Regiment,  who  are  supposed  to  be  gotten  into  your 
Colony,  &  I  desire  that  Your  Honour  would  give  effectual 
orders  to  your  Officers  forthwith  to  search  for  the  said  per- 
sons &  if  any  of  them  may  be  found,  to  secure  them  &  con- 
vey them  safe  into  this  Province,  and  there  deliver  them  to 
Col.  Thomas  Bowen  that  so  they  may  be  put  into  His  Maj- 
esty's Service  abovementioned  or  suffer  the  penalty  of  the 
law  in  that  case  provided. 

I  am  the  more  earnest  in  this  Affair,  because  if  such  disobe- 
dience to  the  authority  of  His  Majesty's  Government  be  not 
discouraged  but  the  offenders  finally  escape  from  Justice 
these  examples  will  soon  be  multiplied,  and  what  detriment 
will  arise  to  His  Majesty's  Service  thereupon  Your  Honour 
will  easily  judge. 
I  am  Sir 

Your  Honour's  most  obedient  humble  Servt 

W.  Shirley. 
To  the  Governor  of  Rhode  Island. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL^ 

Boston,  May  5,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  have  the  pleasure  to  inform  you,  that  two  hours  ago, 
arriv'd  here  his  Majesty's  Ship  the  princess  Mary,  of  60 
Guns,  Captain  Edwards  Commander,  who  was  sent  in  Com- 
pany with  the  Hector,  a  40  Gun  Ship,  Captn  Cornwal  Com- 
mander, to  assist  in  the  Expedition  against  Cape  Breton, 
and   was   design'd   to   proceed   directly   before   Louisbourg 

^  Original,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61  B,  p.  36. 
Printed:  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  i,  25, 

214 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Harbour,  but  her  Bowsprit  being  sprung  she  was  forc'd  to 
come  hither  for  another,  with  which  Hallowell  will  furnish  her 
some  time  tomorrow,  and  Mr  Apthorpe  with  provisions  by 
the  same  time,  and  I  am  in  hopes  she  will  be  dispatched 
from  hence,  to  join  Commodore  Warren  in  three  or  four 
Days,  with  the  Hector,  who  is  hourly  expected  in.  Captain 
Loring,  by  whom  I  sent  my  Dispatches  advising  of  the  Ex- 
pedition to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle,  stay'd  but  twelve  Hours 
in  London,  before  he  was  ordered  to  go  on  board  the  princess 
Mary.  The  Duke  of  Newcastle  being  out  of  Town,  his 
Secretary,  Mr  Stone,  instantly  lay'd  my  Letters  before  his 
Majesty,  who  upon  reading  them,  was  pleas'd  to  express 
his  approbation  of  the  Expedition,  and  referr'd  the  Letters 
to  the  Lords  of  Admiralty,  whereupon  a  Board  was  call'd 
at  Eleven  o'Clock  at  Night.  I  understand  their  Lordships 
received  the  Scheme  with  very  great  pleasure,  and  ordered 
away  those  two  Ships  upon  the  Spot,  and  would  scarce  give 
Loring  leave  to  sleep,  whom  I  sent  for  a  pilot  to  his  Majesty's 
Ships,  before  he  went  on  board  Captn  Edwards. 
I  am. 
Sir, 

Your  Faithful  Friend, 

and  Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 

P.S.  I  take  this  opportunity  of  recommending  to  you 
Capn  Macdonald  ^  Commanding  Officer  of  the  Marines  on 
board  the  princess  Mary  as  a  very  worthy  Officer ;  &  who 
has  had  the  Experience  of  several  Campaigns  in  Flanders  : 
He  is  well  respected  by  the  Duke  of  Newcastle,  &  I  should 
esteem  your  favours  to  him,  as  obligations  to  myself. 

w.  s. 

^  Captain  McDonald,  here  recommended  by  Shirley,  was  later 
one  cause  of  the  friction  between  Warren  and  Pepperrell.  See 
Pepperrell  to  Shirley,  July  17,  post^  p.  250.  Captain  Loring  is  more 
commonly  known  as  Commodore  Joshua  Loring. 


SIS 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  i 

Boston,  May  13  th,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  had  your  favour  this  afternoon  by  young  Mr.  JafFrey, 
who  produced  his  fathers  account,  which  I  desir'd  him  to 
deliver  to  the  Treasurer,  to  whom  his  Father's  receipts  I 
think  were  given.  As  to  the  agreement  your  Excellency 
mentions  to  be  made  between  you  and  me,  that  the  Com- 
panies to  be  rais'd  in  your  Government  should  consist  of  40 
men  each,  and  that  three  companys  of  50  men  each  should 
at  all  Events  be  rais'd  by  you  to  be  in  the  pay  of  this  Gov- 
ernment &  added  to  your  companies,  I  am  apt  to  think  may 
be  a  mistake ;  &  would  therefore  beg  the  favour  of  you  to 
let  the  paragraphs  of  my  several  letters  upon  which  you 
found  that  agreement,  be  transcribed  &  send  them  to  me  by 
the  next  post  (for  I  have  not  kept  copies  of  them  not  imagin- 
ing that  we  could  mistake  each  other)  and  I  will  in  the  mean 
time  look  out  the  paragraphs  of  your  Letters  that  relate  to 
this  affair  and  send  them  to  you  by  the  return  of  the  Post, 
which  I  doubt  not  will  clear  up  the  matter  between  us. 

It  is  certain  that  I  always  intended  and  understood  the 
agreement  to  be  that  you  should  if  you  pleas'd  raise  as  many 
men  to  be  in  the  pay  of  this  Province  as  would  make  up  your 
350  a  Regiment  of  500  men,  ever  supposing  that  350  of  the 
men  to  be  rais'd  by  you  should  be  in  your  pay,  according  to 
the  vote  of  your  assembly,  and  not  that  you  should  raise  only 
320  men,  and  this  Province  pay  the  30  men  which  that  num- 
ber falls  short  of  the  Quota  of  your  Government  voted  to  be 
raised  by  your  Assembly ;  but  that  all  the  men  raised  by 
you  within  your  Province  over  and  above  that  Quota  not 
exceeding  the  number  of  150,  should  be  in  the  pay  of  this 
Government;  and  this  I  consented  to  at  your  own  request 
in  order  to  augment  your  own  350  men,  not  to  ease  your 
Province  of  any  part  of  that  number,  which  would  have  been 

^Original,  Belknap  Papers,  N.  H.  Hist.  Soc.  i,  224.  Printed: 
N.  H.  Prov.  Papers,  5,  942. 

216 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

an  injurious  agreement  on  my  part  both  to  his  Majesty's 
service,  and  this  Province,  and  indeed  unpardonable  in  me 
with  respect  to  the  latter,  and  unreasonable  to  be  expected 
or  desired  of  me  on  the  part  of  your  Government.  I  can't 
pretend  to  recollect  every  expression  which  may  have 
dropped  from  my  pen  on  this  affair  between  us ;  But  I  am 
satisfyed  the  agreement  you  mention  is  so  foreign  to  my 
intention  that  upon  perusing  my  letters  again  and  compar- 
ing 'em  with  your  own  you  will  find  the  real  agreement  to 
be,  that  all  the  men  not  exceeding  150  to  be  raised  by  you 
over  and  above  the  Quota  of  350  Voted  by  your  Assembly, 
should  be  paid  and  subsisted  by  this  Government.  The 
reason  of  my  mentioning  to  you  the  vote  of  the  Assembly  of 
this  Province  for  reducing  our  Companies  from  50  men  in 
each  to  40,  was  to  remove  the  difficulty  of  their  first  vote 
which  I  was  afraid  might  ly  in  your  way  as  it  did  in  mine 
here,  by  which  no  Captain  that  had  not  raised  50  men  was 
entituled  to  have  his  Company  received  into  pay ;  whereas 
by  the  second  vote  forty  men  was  to  be  received  as  a  Com- 
pany, which  I  found  an  ease  to  me  in  raiseing  my  own  Levies, 
but  whatever  I  have  said  in  that  respect  was  not  designed  in 
the  least  as  a  proposal  or  agreement  that  your  Companys 
should  be  only  eight  in  number  and  consist  of  no  more  than 
40  men  Each,  and  that  at  all  events  this  Province  was  to  pay 
&  subsist  150  men  of  the  New  Hampshire  Regiment.  But 
upon  the  whole  I  ever  understood  that  this  Government 
was  to  pay  and  subsist  as  many  men  not  exceeding  150  as 
you  should  raise  within  your  Province  over  and  above  your 
own  Governments  Quota  of  350  and  no  more. 
I  am  with  great  respect 

Sir,  your  Excellencys  most  obedient 

humble  servant 
W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy  Govr  Wentworth. 

P.S.  Upon  second  thoughts  —  If  the  350  men  voted  by 
your  assembly  were  for  the  sea  service  as  well  as  the  Land, 
and  30  of  'em  were  appropriated  to  the  sea,  I  mean  the 

217 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Transports,  then  eight  Companies  of  40  men  each  will  make 
your  Quota  of  Land  forces,  according  to  your  Intention,  tho' 
I  did  not  understand  it  so  at  first.  But  I  am  willing  that 
should  be  so.  But  then  320  of  the  men  raised  by  you  must 
in  all  justice  &  reason  be  in  your  pay,  as  that  is  your  Quota 
voted  by  yr  Assembly. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELLi 

Boston,  May  17th,  1745. 
Sir, 

In  pursuance  of  the  inclosed  Advice  of  the  Council  I  have 
requested  Commodore  Warren,  who  will  transmit  this  to  you, 
to  discharge  such  of  our  hir'd  Cruizers  as  he  thinks  his 
Majesty's  Service  will  dispense  wth,  first  advising  with  you 
upon  it,  by  letting  you  know  his  determination  in  the  matter 
by  a  line  to  you,  that  you  may  apprize  him  of  any  particular 
Service,  wch  you  may  have  for  any  of  'em.  I  think  Rouse 
should  be  kept  longest  in  pay  of  any  of  'em,  as  being  the  best 
Sailor,  and  very  capable  of  Service  :  You  will  be  pleased  to 
consider  also  whether  Donahew,  and  Bosch  may  be  spar'd. 
I  have  desir'd  Mr  Warren  to  spare  likewise  Smethurst  and 
Fletcher  for  the  protection  of  our  own  Coast,  and  to  send 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts, 
61  B,  p.  55.  Pepperrell's  1400-word  letter  to  Shirley  of  May  12 
giving  an  account  of  the  engagement  with  the  French  at  Chap- 
peaurouge  Bay  and  the  favorable  position  gained  as  a  result  had 
probably  not  been  read  at  this  time.  In  another  place  Shirley 
speaks  of  receiving  it  on  Friday  (May  17),  but  although  in  "hourly 
expectation  of  news,"  the  packet  was  as  yet  unopened.  Pepperrell's 
letter  of  May  12  was  sent  to  Newcastle  and  is  in  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5, 
900,  p.  183.  A  copy  was  forwarded  to  Governor  Law  of  Connecticut 
on  May  18  (see  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  11,  289),  and  a  second  copy 
forwarded  to  England  is  in  Admir.  Sec.  Insular  Letters,  3817.  It 
was  in  reply  to  this  letter  that  Shirley  wrote  Pepperrell  on  May  22  : 
"your  packet  has  given  me  and  the  Council  and  your  country  the 
highest  satisfaction  in  your  conduct  which,  we  hope,  will  soon  com- 
pass the  reduction  of  Louisbourg  itself."  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  10, 
205. 

218 


'i  ■<;  V  4  .^  ^  -§ ,« 
,^^  :s  §  s  a  -5  s  -i 


X  «3 '^  cs  tq  fe;  ^s  a,  v^  s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

'em  home  as  soon  as  may  be ;  But  all  these  things  must  give 
way  to  his  Majesty's  Service  in  the  present  Expedition,  wch 
must  be  consulted  in  the  first  place  :  And  whatever  the  Com- 
modore shall  determine  concerning  the  Employment  of  any 
of  the  Cruizers  will  I  am  sure  be  quite  satisfactory  to  the 
province  :  If  Sanders  likewise  can  be  spar'd,  we  have  use 
for  him  here.  But  we  must  referr  every  thing  intirely  to  the 
Commodore  and  you  in  this  Affair. 

If  you  have  room  to  fill  up  a  first  Lieutenancy  for  young 
Mr  Cosby,  I  should  be  glad,  as  also  for  Colonel  Bradstreet's 
Nephews,  who  went  in  Captn  Gayton.  We  are  in  hourly 
expectation  of  News  from  you  ;  and  with  our  most  Ardent 
Wishes  and  prayers  for  your  Success  I  am 
Sir 

Your  most  Assur'd  and 

Faithful  Friend  and 

Servant 


W.  Shirley. 


Lieut.  Genl.  Pepperrill. 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY  TO   WILLIAM   PEPPERRELL 

[Extract  ^] 

Boston,  May  25,  1745. 
Sir, 

In  answer  to  the  letters  I  sent  to  the  governments  of  New 
England  pressing  for  a  reinforcement  of  men,  I  have  receiv'd 
from  Governr  Wentworth  that  he  will  use  his  best  endeavours 
with  his  new  Assembly,  which  is  to  meet  the  5th  of  next 
month  ;  ^  from  the  Rhode  Island  Governour  that  he  will  use 
his  with  the  Assembly  of  that  Colony,  which  sits  to-morrow ; 
and  from  the  Governour  of  Connecticut  that  the  Assembly 
of  that  Colony  have  voted  two  companies  of  100  men  each, 
exclusive  of  commission  officers,  to  be  rais'd  instantly  ^;  and 

*  Printed  in  full:    6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  217. 

*  See  N.  H.  Prov.  Papers,  5,  752 ;  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  113  ;  Conn. 
Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  II,  296. 

219 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

as  I  have  promis'd  in  order  to  induce  'em  the  more  readily  to 
raise  men  that  I  would  take  care  that  the  troops  should  be 
convoy'd  to  Cape  Breton,  I  have  desir'd  the  Cofhodore  to 
enable  me  to  do  it  by  instantly  sending  away  to  New  London 
the  Connecticut  Colony  sloop  and  one  other  of  our  cruizers 
besides  Semthurst  and  Fletcher,  whom  I  desir'd  for  the  pro- 
tection of  our  own  coasts.  I  meet  our  own  Assembly  Thurs- 
day next. 

I  am  assur'd  that  the  170  troops  which  I  hourly  expect 
from  England  under  the  command  of  Captn  Winslow  have 
orders  to  proceed  directly  to  Boston,  and  there  to  take  their 
orders  from  me,  and  if  I  send  'em  upon  no  other  service, 
for  'em  to  proceed  from  hence  to  Annapolis  Royal.  If  I  find 
I  can  with  any  safety  to  the  garrison  send  'em  to  Cape  Breton 
I  will  do  it,  but  I  shall  be  very  tender  of  leaving  that  expos'd 
to  any  risque  for  the  want  of  'em.  Since  I  begun  this  letter 
I  am  inform'd  that  400  of  the  Nova  Scotians  enlisted  at 
Schiegneto  and  Menis  in  the  enemy's  service,  and  have  been 
training  all  this  winter  under  officers  from  Canada.  It 
grieves  me  much  that  I  have  it  not  in  my  power  to  send  a 
party  of  500  men  forthwith  to  Menis,  and  burn  Grand  Pre, 
their  chief  town,  and  open  all  their  sluices,  and  lay  their 
country  waste  at  the  back  of  their  camp,  which  might  be 
done  with  such  a  number  in  a  night's  time.  But  if  it  pleases 
God  that  we  succeed  at  Cape  Breton,  I  doubt  not  but  we 
shall  settle  Nova  Scotia  upon  a  better  foot  for  the  future. 
>i>  >i(  *  4:  *  *  4: 

Sir, 
Your  faithful  friend  and  humble  servant. 

W.  Shirley. 
Lieut.  Genl.  Pepperill. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ' 

(Duplicate)  Boston,  June  2,  1745. 

My  Lord  Duke, 

I  have  to  add  to  my  other  Pacquets  by  this  Ship,  which  is 
upon  the  Point  of  Sailing,  that  I  have  just  now  received  Dis- 
patches from  Lieutenant  Governour  Mascarene  informing 
me  that  on  the  24th  of  May  the  French  and  Indians  before 
his  Majesty's  Garrison  at  Annapolis  Royal  struck  their 
Standard  &  raised  the  Seige  of  that  Place,  having  received 
Orders  from  Louisbourg  by  a  Messenger  Conveyed  from 
thence  for  that  purpose,  to  quit  the  Seige  and  come  to  their 
Relief.  Whether  they  will  endeavour  to  make  a  Diversion 
by  attempting  to  surprize  Canso,  where  I  could  spare  no  more 
than  a  detachment  of  eighty  men  from  the  Land  Forces  em- 
ployed in  the  Seige  of  Louisbourg,  or  to  come  upon  the  back 
of  our  Camp  before  Louisbourg  is  uncertain  :  But  I  have  the 
Satisfaction  to  hear  from  Mr  Mascarene  and  Mr  Engineer 
Bastide,  that  the  Latter  (whom  with  Governour  Mascarene  I 
had  before  soUicited  strongly  for  the  Assistance  of  one  En- 
gineer &  some  Gunners  from  Annapolis)  sail'd  on  the  27th 
of  May  in  an  arm'd  Sloop  belonging  to  the  Board  of  Ordnance 
with  an  Assistant  Engineer,  a  Master  Smith,  who  is  likewise 
a  good  Artillery  Officer,  &  two  Gunners  from  the  Garrison 
for  Canso  and  Cape  Breton,  both  which  places  I  hope  they 
will  reach  before  the  Enemy  can  reach  either  of  them. 

I  have  upon  this  Advice  sent  further  Stores  to  Canso,  & 
apprized  the  General  and  Commodore  by  a  Pacquet  Boat, 
of  this  Incident.  I  have  the  honour  to  be  with  the  most 
dutiful!  Regards    My  Lord  Duke 

Your  Grace's  most  obedient  and 

most  dutiful  Servant  ^  ^ 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 
Endorsed:  r>     ^       t 

Boston  June  2,  1745  Qovr  Shirley] 

5  July  17  ■'  ^ 

,^P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  193. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM   PEPPERRELL  TO   WILLIAM   SHIRLEY 

[Extracts  ^] 

Camp,  June  2d,  1745. 
May  it  please  your  Excellency, 

Inclos'd  is  a  copy  of  my  last  pr  Smith,  since  which  our 
batteries  have  been  employ'd  in  the  best  manner  the  gun- 
ners I  could  here  pick  up  &  the  scantiness  of  ammunition 
would  admit  of.  Our  powder  has  been  some  days  since 
expended,  as  well  the  100  half  barrels  sent  pr  Capt  Gayton 
as  the  whole  of  what  was  first  brought  from  Boston.  We 
are  now  also  in  want  of  shott  of  all  sorts.  ...  I  have 
borrow'd  of  Commodre  Warren  187I  barrels  gunpowder, 
but  have  not  the  least  encouragemt  from  him  to  expect  any 
further  supply,  so  am  unavoidably  oblig'd  to  press  on  your 
Excellency  the  necessity  of  an  ample  supply  for  our  future 
occasions,  as  well  as  to  return  Mr  Warren   the   quantity 

^  Pepperrell  Papers,  Mass.  Hist.  Society.  Printed :  6  Mass. 
Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  241.  For  the  months  of  June  and  July  there 
is  an  interesting  Journal  of  Events  at  Louisbourg  by  Roger  Wol- 
cott  of  Connecticut,  printed  in  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  Vol.  i. 
Sir  William  Pepperrell  was  born  in  Kittery,  Maine,  June  27,  1696, 
and  died  there  July  6,  1759.  His  father  was  a  native  of  Devon- 
shire, and  had  been  a  merchant  in  America  for  about  twenty  years 
at  the  time  of  his  son's  birth.  Entering  his  father's  business  at 
an  early  age,  young  Pepperrell  was  appointed  Captain  of  Cavalry 
when  twenty-one,  and  by  successive  advance  became  Colonel  of 
the  regiment  with  command  of  all  the  militia  in  Maine  at  the  age 
of  thirty.  Three  years  earlier  he  had  married  Mary  Hirch,  a 
granddaughter  of  Judge  Samuel  Sewall.  Family  position  and 
wealth  aided  in  securing  Pepperrell's  election  to  the  Massa- 
chusetts Legislature  and  Council,  and  in  1730,  although  with  no 
legal  training,  he  was  appointed  Chief  Justice  of  the  Court  of 
Common  Pleas  for  the  County  of  York,  an  office  he  held  until  his 
death.  Offered  the  command  of  the  Louisbourg  expedition  by 
Governor  Shirley,  he  accepted  the  post  and  sailed  from  Boston 
with  the  Massachusetts  troops  Mar.  24,  1744-45.  On  June  16 
the  city  capitulated,  and  although  not  made  commander  of  the 
city  as  he  had  hoped,  Pepperrell  was  made  a  Baronet  and  appointed 
Colonel  of  an  American  regiment  to  be  raised  on  the  English 
establishment,  an  honor  shared  with  Shirley  himself. 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

borrow'd  of  him.  .  .  .  We  have  made  many  essays  for  an 
attack  on  the  Island  Battery,  in  the  last  of  wch  abt  400  of 
the  army  were  detach'd  for  that  purpose,  but  by  the 
strength  of  that  fortress,  &  the  advantage  the  enemy  had 
of  us  by  their  being  under  cover,  &  our  men  quite  open  & 
expos'd,  we  were  repuls'd  with  the  loss  of  near  half  our 
party,  either  kill'd,  drown'd,  or  taken  prisoners,  that  I  ap- 
prehend no  further  attempts  will  be  made  on  that  fortress 
by  boats ;  since  this  misfortune  the  enemy  have  doubled 
their  fire  on  our  trenches  at  the  West  Gate,  but  to  no  great 
advantage  on  their  part,  we  keeping  our  ground  there. 

Commodore  Warren's  squadron  has  some  days  since  been 
join'd  by  the  Princess  Mary  &  Hector ;  and  on  the  morrow 
by  the  assistance  of  600  men  I  have  ordered  him  out  of  the 
army  &  transports,  wch  upon  Comre  Warren's  repeated 
solicitations  my  Council  advised  to,  as  necessary  for  his 
majesty's  service,  wch  will  have  the  addition  of  a  fine  French 
prize  ship  of  64  guns,  wch  in  my  last  I  inform'd  your  Ex- 
cellency he  was  then  engag'd  with,  so  that  I  hope  he  will  be 
able  effectually  to  support  the  blockade  by  sea.  By  that 
prize  we  learn  that  another  ship  of  like  force  is  daily  ex- 
pected here  with  three  store  ships  from  France,  wch  hope 
will  fall  into  his  hands,  wch  if  he  is  able  to  man  her,  and 
the  Newfoundland  ships  join  the  squadron,  hope  shall  be 
safe  at  all  events  in  that  quarter,  but  for  the  land  service 
we  are  inferiour  in  number  to  any  account  of  the  enemy's 
forces,  whose  not  sallying  on  us  hitherto  must  be  owing  to 
their  apprehension  of  our  being  much  more  formidable  than 
we  are.  We  have  abt  1500  sick  &  wounded  men,  from  whom 
have  little  prospect  of  service,  so  that  a  reinforcemt  of  near 
3000  men  is  absolutely  necessary.  Should  we  be  so  happy 
as  to  reduce  this  formidable  place  before  their  arrival,  they 
will  notwithstanding  be  most  of  them  necessary  to  sustain 
the  town,  the  Royall  &  Island  Batterys,  until  his  Majesty 
takes  the  same  under  the  charge  of  his  troops.  I  have  heard 
nothing  of  Smithurst  since  his  being  in  bad  weather  on  his 
passage  from  St  Ann's.  If  he  is  well  he  must  be  at  Boston 
long  before  this  can  reach  your  hands. 

223 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

No  ship  has  got  into  Louisbourg  since  my  last.  There 
is  a  French  ship  of  30  &  another  of  26  guns  cruizing  be- 
tween this  &  Cape  Sables,  for  want  of  an  entry  into  this  port. 
Wish  it  were  in  my  power  without  prejudice  to  the  siege  to 
promote  any  of  the  ships  of  war  going  for  protection  of  the 
New  Engd  coast.  We  are  now  erecting  a  battery  on  the 
light  house  point  to  play  on  the  Island  Battery,  &  prevent 
the  entrance  of  any  French  ships  into  the  port,  wch  hope  in 
two  days  will  be  ready  for  service.   .   .   . 

I  have  been  waiting  wth  four  of  my  Council  for  several 
days  past  to  have  an  interview  wth  Commodore  Warren, 
at  his  desire,  on  board  his  ship,  but  fogs  and  bad  weather 
hitherto  prevent  our  meeting.  If  it  be  possible  to  settle 
with  him  a  general  attack  it  will  be  done  ^ ;  but  should  the 
event  be  heavy  on  the  land  forces  we  shall  be  only  able  to 
act  the  defensive  part  for  a  while  by  cover  of  the  ships, 
without  a  considerable  reinforcemt  from  our  province  &  our 
neighbouring  provinces  &  colonies,  who  had  too  mean 
thoughts  of  the  strength,  and  I  wish  they  may  not  yet  of 
the  consequence,  of  this  place  to  his  Majesty's  Northern  Colo- 
nies and  all  his  dominions.  I  had  in  due  time  your  Ex- 
cellency's favours  of  10  &  17th  ulto.  Whether  Colo  Mc- 
Donald will  come  on  shoar  to  join  our  forces,  or  enter  the 
town  by  boats  from  the  men  of  war  is  not  yet  settled.  As 
to  dismissg  any  of  the  cruizers,  I  fear  it  may  at  present  be 
attended  wth  great  inconvenience.  I  shall  advise  with 
Commodore  Warren,  &  endeavr  that  these  be  not  kept  longer 
than  their  service  be  of  more  consequence  to  the  province 
than  their  pay  wch  is  exhorbitant.  Donahew,  as  I  under- 
stand, is  gone  for  Boston  without  any  directions  from  me, 
and  ordered  the  prizes  &  prisoners  from  Canso,  I  wish  they 
may  be  all  well.  We  have  abt  200  shells  of  13  inches  yet  by 
us,  found  at  the  Royall  Battery,  but  the  engineers  say  they're 
something  too  large  for  the  mortar  brot  wth  us.     I  propose 

^  A  consultation  of  officers  had  been  held  on  the  Superbe  May  25, 
as  a  result  of  which  Warren  had  issued  general  orders  to  vessels, 
giving  the  line  of  battle  for  entering  Louisbourg  harbor.  These  are 
printed  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  220. 

224 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

to  send  this  under  Rous's  convoy  to  Cape  Sables.  I  shall 
write  yr  Excellency  again  by  Capt  Gayton.  In  the  mean 
time,  I  am,  your  Excellency's,  &c.  W.  P. 

To  his  Excellency,  &c.,  &c.,  &c. 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   WILLIAM    PEPPERRELL 

[Extracts  ^] 

Boston,  June  3,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  had  the  pleasure  of  receiving  your  packet  of  the  19th, 
20th,  &  23d  of  May,  giving  me  an  account  of  your  transport- 
ing your  eight  cannon  of  22lb  shott,  &  erecting  a  second  bat- 
tery within  200  yards  of  the  west  part  of  the  town,  both 
which  I  acknowledge  are  beyond  my  own  expectations,  tho 
I  thought  it  prudent  to  send  the  two  trains  of  artillery.  I 
am  very  sensible  of  the  extreme  dliRculty  and  fatigue  wch 
must  have  attended  the  execution  of  these  two  things,  wch 
are  very  considerable  points  gain'd  agt  the  enemy,  and  I 
hope  such  a  breach  will  be  soon  made  in  their  gate  and  works 
as  may  afford  an  entrance  by  assault  into  that  part  of  the 
town,  when  it  shall  be  thought  advisable  to  make  one  upon 
it,  wch  whenever  it  is  done  I  could  wish  it  might  be  in  con- 
junction with  the  sea  forces  entring  the  harbour  and  attack- 
ing the  town  on  that  side,  rather  than  by  an  assault  by  land 
only,  wth  the  assistance  of  1500  seamen  landing  for  that 
purpose,  as  the  Commodore  proposes  (with  your  consent),  in 
case  upon  a  General  Council  of  land  and  sea  officers  it  shall 
be  thought  not  adviseable  for  the  ships  to  enter  the  harbour, 
wch  I  should  think  could  not  have  been  a  question  in  the 
least  had  the  Island  Battery  been  taken.  ...  I  congratulate 
you  upon  his  taking  the  Vigilant,  wch  I  am  endeavouring  to 
get  mann'd  from  hence  with  the  utmost  dispatch.  If  possible 
to  be  done.  This  is  an  heavy  blow  indeed  upon  the  enemy, 
and  I  hope  may  be  foUow'd  with  one  or  two  captures  soon  of 
the  same  nature. 

^  Printed  in  full :  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  252. 
VOL.1  —  Q  225 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

I  apprlz'd  you  In  my  last  that  the  governmt  of  Connecti- 
cutt  was  raising  200  more  men,  and  our  Genl  Court  has  voted 
400  more.  I  shall  strain  hard  for  500.  Rhode  Island  has 
voted  150  more;  and  the  New  Hampshire  sets  to-day.  The 
Jerseys  has  voted  200olb  In  provisions,  and  another  sub- 
scription is  on  foot  at  York.  But  the  men  Is  the  material 
article,  wch  I  shall  hurry  away  with  the  utmost  dispatch, 
but  can't  send  'em  'till  some  of  our  cruizers  and  transports 
arrive  here  from  you,  wch  pray  let  us  have.  I  am  In  some 
pain  for  Smethurst,  as  also  least  the  800  French  and  Indians 
wch  were  lately  besieging  the  garrison  at  Annapolis  Royal 
should  surprize  either  Canso,  or  come  by  surprize  on  the  back 
of  our  army  before  Loulsburg,  or  get  into  the  town.  For 
preventing  the  first  I  think  one  of  our  20  gun  cruizers  at 
least  should  be  a  guard  to  Canso,  If  not  a  detachment  of  50 
men  at  least,  or  100  If  possible  to  be  spared,  orderd  to  It, 
and  a  very  good  lookout  kept  by  our  cruizers  round  the 
Island.  I  suppose  Mr  Bastlde  Is  arrlv'd  with  you  by  this 
time,  with  the  Assistant  Engineer  Combrune,  his  master 
smith,  and  two  good  gunners  from  Annapolis  Royal.  They 
set  sail  the  27th  of  May,  and  Inform  me  that  the  siege  was 
rals'd  the  24th  by  order  from  Loulsburg  wch  requlr'd  those 
Indians  and  Canadeans  to  come  forthwith  to  the  relief  of 
the  town,  or  to  surprize  Canso.  Govr  Mascarene  writes 
me  word  that  by  the  two  vessells  wch  escap'd  into  Louisbourg 
harbour  the  enemy  were  advls'd  of  a  72  and  three  other 
large  ships  of  warr,  with  two  frigates  of  36  guns  each  lying 
ready  In  Brest  to  sail  wth  the  new  Governour  and  Mr 
Duvlvler  for  Louisbourg.  Those  advices  doubtless  gave  the 
enemy  resolution  to  hold  out  'till  the  arrival  of  that  arma- 
ment. But  I  should  think  when  they  were  apprlz'd  of  the 
large  ship's  being  intercepted  by  the  Commodore  (wch  I 
shrewdly  suspect  must  have  the  new  Governour  and  Mr 
Duvlvler  in  It,  or  at  least  one  of  'em),  and  the  others  being 
In  danger  of  sharing  the  same  fate  that  It  must  lower  their 
spirits  &  make  'em  more  flexible  to  terms  of  capitulation. 

I  am  extremely  glad  that  Annapolis  Royal  is  at  present  out 
of  danger.     Had  it  been  taken  the  Inhabitants  would  have 

226 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

instantly  taken  up  arms,  and  made  it  difficult  to  have  been 
retaken,  and  perhaps  have  come  upon  your  back  besides. 
******* 

Your  most  faithfull  friend  &  Servt 

W.  Shirley.^ 
Honble  Genl  Pepperill. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  GIDEON  WANTON  ^ 

Boston,  June  6,  1745. 
Sir, 

Notwithstanding  I  have  but  five  days  ago  applied  to  you 
for  the  Assistance  of  your  government  in  manning  the 
Vigilant  prize,  for  His  Majesty's  Service  at  Cape  Breton, 
I  find  it  necessary  to  trouble  you  with  a  second  letter  upon 
that  Affair  for  although  the  General  Assembly  of  this  Prov- 
ince has  granted  a  bounty  of  £3  in  bills  of  the  new  tenor 
to  each  Volunteer  that  shall  enlist  and  I  have  besides  issued 
my  Warrants  for  impressing  Seamen  for  this  Service,  I 
find  my  endeavors  will  be  to  little  purpose,  whilst  all  mariners 
subject  to  be  impressed  here  into  His  Majesty's  Service,  fly 
to  Rhode  Island  to  avoid  it  (as  indeed  has  been  long  the 
practice)  and  are  there  sheltered  and  encouraged,  where  (I 
am  credibly  informed)  there  are  at  this  time  many  hundreds 
of  foreign  Seamen  daily  walking  the  streets  of  Newport, 
whilst  scarce  one  is  to  be  found  in  Boston  ;  from  whence  I  am 
assured  in  particular  that  upwards  of  twenty  have  secretly 
fled  towards  your  Colony  from  my  Impress  Warrants,  within 
these  last  two  or  three  days.^ 

This  being  the  case  Sir,  I  think  it  necessary  to  inform  you 

^  The  last  paragraph  of  this  letter  illustrates  the  prevailing 
opinion  regarding  the  Acadians  held  at  this  time.  A  postscript  is 
omitted.  2  pj-jnted :  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  136. 

^  The  resolutions  referred  to  by  Shirley  were  of  June  i  and  were 
as  follows : 

In  the  House  of  Representatives,  June  i,  I74S- 
Voted.  —  That  His  Excellency,  the  Captain  General,   be  desired 
as  soon  as  may  be,  to  cause  to  be  impressed  such  seamen  as  are 

227 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  it,  &  as  I  have  the  honor  of  receiving  (among  other  in- 
structions from  His  Majesty  upon  this  occasion)  his  express 
commands  to  supply  Commodore  Warren  with  what  men 
and  shipping  he  shall  want  for  the  protection  of  His  Majesty's 
Subjects  in  his  Northern  Colonies,  and  the  annoyance  of 
his  Enemies,  and  their  Settlements  in  these  Parts  ;  and  Mr. 
Warren  has  applied  to  me  to  furnish  him  v/ith  Seamen,  to 
man  the  Vigilant  for  His  Majesty's  Service  at  Cape  Breton, 
I  hope  you  will  excuse  me  if  I  repeat  my  Application  to  your 
Governmt  for  that  purpose ;  and  that  particularly  at  so 
critical  a  conjuncture  for  His  Majesty's  Service,  and  the 
general  interest  of  all  his  Northern  Colonies  (in  which  your 
own  has  a  very  considerable  share)  as  the  present  emergency 
plainly  is,  you  will  exert  yourselves  in  the  most  effectual 
manner,  for  furnishing  Mr.  Warren  with  Seamen,  which 
I  am  satisfied  it  is  in  the  power  of  your  Governmt  to  do, 
either  by  offering  the  same  bounty  to  volunteers  as  this 
governmt  has  done,  or  by  impressing ;  and  that  you  will  not 
permit  your  Colony  to  be  an  Assylum  to  all  mariners  com- 
ing into  New  England,  for  screening  themselves  from  His 
Majesty's  Service,  especially  when  Mr.  Warren  has  offered 
all  Volunteers  the  advantageous  terms  of  entering  into  pay 
from  the  time  of  their  enlistment,  and  being  discharged  if 
they  desire  it  at  the  end  of  the  Expedition,  or  his  sooner  re- 
turn to  Boston ;  which  makes  their  declining  to  serve  their 
King  and  Country  upon  this  occasion  wholly  inexcusable. 
I  am  Sir, 

Your  Honour's  obedient  humble  Servt. 

W.  Shirley. 
To  the  honble  Gideon  Wanton,  Esq. 

foreigners,  belonging  to  all  inward  bound  vessels,  (coasting  and 
provision  vessels  coming  from  the  northward  of  South  Carolina, 
on  the  Continent,  excepted,)  in  order  for  manning  the  Vigilant,  a 
ship  of  war,  lately  taken  by  the  Hon'ble  Commodore  Warren, 
from  the  French ;  and  that  there  be  allowed  and  paid  out  of  the 
public  Treasury,  the  sum  of  £3,  to  every  other  able  bodied  man 
that  shall  voluntarily  enlist  himself  in  His  Majesty's  service,  for  the 
manning  the  said  ship,  the  Vigilant,  to  make  up  in  the  whole,  with 
those  impressed,  the  number  of  three  hundred  men. 

228 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  JONATHAN  LAW 

[Extract  *] 

Boston,  15  June,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  have  just  now  receiv'd  Letters  from  General  Pepperrell 
&  Commodore  Warren,  by  which  I  learn  that  altho'  we 
have  suffered  some  Loss  of  men  (between  100  &  200)  in  an 
Attack  of  the  Island  Battery,  wch  miscarried,  yet  that  we 
have  obtained  considerable  Advantages  agst  the  Enemy  in 
taking  several  of  their  provision  Vessels,  &  worsting  them  in 
some  Skirmishes,  our  parties  have  had  with  them,  &  by  the 
Intelligence  they  have  reed  from  Prisoners,  wch  is  confirmed 
by  other  Circumstances,  the  Enemy  are  short  of  Provisions 
&  Ammunition,  But  as  the  Number  of  our  Men  there  are 
not  equal  to  the  Greatness  of  the  Enterprize,  &  therefore  the 
Duty  is  heavy  on  the  Officers  &  Soldiers  they  press  impor- 
tunately for  at  least  three  thousand  Land  Troops  as  ab- 
solutely necessary  to  reinforce  them,  &  a  considerable  Num- 
ber of  Seamen  for  manning  the  Ship  Vigilant.  ...  I  do 
assure  you  that  I  find  the  Assembly  were  well  spirited 
to  support  the  Expedition  to  their  utmost,  and  that  they 
will  do  all  that  they  can  to  furnish  the  necessary  Recruits, 
but  it  is  not  possible  nor  can  it  be  expected  that  we  should 
answer  these  Demands  of  Recruits  without  very  great  As- 
sistance from  our  Neighbors. 

We  hear  nothing  of  our  Transports  coming  from  Cape 
Breton,  and  are  taking  up  fresh  Transports  for  our  own 
Troops  here,  &  are  afraid  there  will  be  a  Necessity  for  your 
doing  the  same,  tho'  we  hope  you  may  depend  upon  Convoy 
wch  we  expect  every  day  from  thence. 

^  Original,  Conn.  Hist.  Soc,  Law  Papers,  i,  366.  Printed  :  ibtd. 
Coll.  II,  302.  A  similar  letter  to  Governor  Wentworth  of  New 
Hampshire  is  In  N.  H.  Prov.  Papers,  5,  947,  and  to  Governor 
Wanton  of  Rhode  Island  in  Corres.  Col.  Govs,  of  R.  1.  i,  346. 
See  also  Pepperrell  to  Shirley  of  June  5,  1745,  in  6  Mass.  Hist. 
Soc.  Coll.  ID,  261,  and  Shirley  to  Colonel  Thomas  Bowen  of  June 
19  in  Boston  Public  Library. 

229 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

It  will  be  of  great  Consequence  that  I  hear  speedily  from 
you  for  the  Encouragement  of  our  friends  at  Cape  Breton. 
I  am  Sir, 

Your  Honour's  obedient 

humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 

P.S.  I  hope  your  honour  will  exert  your  self  upon  this 
Occasion ;  it  is  the  very  Crisis  of  the  fate  of  the  Colonies  of 
New  England.  I  must  press  you  in  the  Strongest  manner 
to  augment  the  number  of  your  recruits  ;  and  to  imbark  those 
already  raised  as  soon  as  possible,  as  I  shall  begin  to  do 
throut  this  Province.  The  Disappointment  from  the  Trans- 
ports not  being  sent  by  the  General,  as  he  propos'd  is  un- 
foreseen &  unavoidable  :  pray  don't  let  that  be  any  obstacle 
in  the  case.  The  Quantity  of  ammunition  I  must  now  send 
down  is  exceeding  great  but  we  regard  not  Expence. 

The  honourable  Jonathan  Law  Esqr. 

JONATHAN  LAW  TO  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  ^ 

Milford,  June  19th,  1745. 
Sr, 

Saturday  night  was  Sennit  a  Justice  of  peace  on  our 
western  Borders  informed  me  of  one  who  Contrived  to 
Expose  young  Boyce  and  others  to  be  taken  in  the  Very  act 
of  using  the  Counterfeit  plates  in  a  Certain  Swamp  in  the 
oblong  on  tuesday  following  but  it  being  out  of  this  Govermt 
I  sent  the  Justice  directly  to  Govr  Clinton  to  Inform  of  the 
Stratagem  thinking  nothing  was  wanting  but  an  authority  & 
assistance  Sufficient  would  readily  be  had  of  our  people 
within  ten  miles  of  the  Spot,  he  Shewed  me  two  rhoad  island 
xxs  bills  one  with  Divers  mistakes  in  it  the  other  with  those 
errors  in  the  plate  rectified  taken  of  the  day  before,  and  the 
Justice  returned  with  a  Letter  the  Govr  Signifying  that  the 

^  Cont.  copy.  Conn.  Hist.  Soc,  Law  Papers,  i,  332.  Printed  :  ibid. 
Coll.  II,  312.     See  Shirley  to  Law,  Apr.  27,  ante,  p.  211. 

230 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Council  were  of  opinion  that  there  was  no  foundation  for  a 
warrant,  the  Justice  being  able  to  Sware  only  to  heresays 
but  the  undertaker  had  found  the  plates  a  20s  Rh  and  an 
half  a  Crown  Plate  &  a  N.  Y.  plate  of  20s  not  perfectly 
Compleated,  Press  cloths  and  other  implements  &c :  Sends 
them  over  the  Line,  Decoys  Boyce  &  one  Hurlburt  a  partner 
into  the  Edge  of  this  Govmt  Seizeth  them  &  they  are  in  N. 
Haven  Gaol  Hurlburt  Confesseth  himself  Guilty  and  ac- 
cuseth  22  persons  as  Confederate  with  them  Boyces  father 
&  Scions  were  transported  through  this  Govrmt  to  you  Some 
time  Since. 

So  far  as  I  can  Learn  our  troops  have  been  Enlisted  a 
Considerable  time  since  when  the  transports  are  Likely  to 
be  here  shall  Exspect  Speedy  Information. 

In  hast  ask  your  Excellencys  pardon  for  this  trouble  & 
Conclude  as  your  Humble  Servant  j  j 

To  Govr  Shirley 

Endorsed:  Copy  of  a  Letter  to  Govr  Shirley  June  19  1745 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  GIDEON  WANTON  ^ 

gj^  Boston,  June  24,  1745. 

The  Siege  of  Loulsbourg  having  quite  exhausted  all  our 

Magazines  of  powder  except  a  necessary  Store  for  Castle 

William,   and   it  being  uncertain  what  further  demand  of 

powder  there  may  be  for  His  Majesty's  Service  at  that  place 

&  when  any  further  Supplies  of  It  may  be  brought  in  here,  I 

must  desire  your  Honour  to  lay  an  Embargo  upon  all  the 

powder  now  lying  in  your  Stores  or  Magazines  (as  I  have 

done  for  several  months  past  in  this  Province)  so  as  to  secure 

it  for  some  time  for  the  Service  of  the  present  Expedition 

against  Cape  Breton  at  the  market  price  in  case  it  should 

be  wanted. 

I  am  Sir 

Your  Honours  most  Obedient,  Humble  Servt 

To  His  Honour,  Governor  Wanton.  iTrr  p 

W.  Shirley. 

^  Printed :  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  137. 

231 


CORIlESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL  TO  WILLIAM    SHIRLEY  ^ 

May  it  please  your  Excellency, 

My  last  was  by  the  Hector,  man  of  war,  Capt  Corn- 
wall, who  saild  for  Boston  30th  ulto,  duplicate  of  which 
I  now  inclose  to  your  Excellency,  also  copies  of  my  letters 
to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  and  Lords  of  the  Admiralty, 
and  a  list  of  the  artillery  &  warlike  stores  here,  and  of  Mr 
Bastide's  estimate  of  the  repairs  necessary,  likewise  du- 
plicate of  the  advice  of  the  Council  of  War  relating  to 
sd  repairs  and  copy  of  their  further  advice  thereon  wch 
hope  will  be  acceptable  to  your  Excellency.  By  the  last 
you'll  find  it  is  propos'd  that  bills  be  drawn  by  Commodore 
Warren  &  myself  on  his  Majesty's  Treasury  for  payment  of 
sd  repairs,  which  he  is  very  confident  will  be  honoured, 
which  bills  are  to  be  dispos'd  of  for  sterling  money  in  order 
to  pay  off  the  workmen  weekly,  the  better  to  encourage 
them  therein ;  and  the  Council  have  made  choice  of  two 
treasurers  jointly  to  receive  and  pay  sd  money,  one  of  which 
was  nominated  by  me  and  the  other  by  Commodore  Warren, 
and  the  repairs  are  to  be  carried  on  as  fast  as  possible  under 
the  direction  of  Mr  Bastide,  but  all  kinds  of  materials  there- 
for are  wanted,  of  which  he  has  given  in  a  list,  copy  of  which 
also  have  herewith  inclos'd,  and  pray  your  Excellency  would 
be  pleas'd  to  give  such  orders  as  your  wisdom  shall  think 
best,  there  being  but  a  very  small  quantity  of  any  of  these 
species  here  at  present. 

I  find  many  in  the  army  are  very  impatient  to  return  home, 
and  plead  your  Excellency's  proclamation  ;  they  are  also  very 
desirous  that  some  suitable  person  should  go  to  England 
that  their  services  in  this  expedition  may  be  justly  and 
fully  represented,  and  the  Council  have  requested  &  urged  me 
to  go  in  Rous,  &  to  take  with  me  a  gent,  from  the  Connectt. 
and  N.  Hampshire  regiments,  but  as  I  imagine  that  I  ought 
not  to  leave  my  station  here  'till  your  Excellency's  mind  is 
known  thereon  I  have  declin'd  it,  but  as  your  presence  here 

*  Printed:  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  310. 
232 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

is  earnestly  requested  &  expected,  I  shall  impatiently  wait  for 
that  favour  in  order  to  your  Excellency's  giving  the  neces- 
sary directions  relating  to  this  place  and  army,  and  that  I 
may  obtain  leave  to  return  to  my  family.  In  the  mean  time 
shall  permit  none  of  the  troops  to  return  but  such  persons 
as  the  committee  appointed  for  that  purpose  shall  advise  to. 
Capt  Rous  has  brought  from  Annapolis  two  mortars  and 
sundry  stores  which  it  is  thought  adviseable  should  be  re- 
tain'd  here  at  present ;  those  sent  from  Boston  I  propose  to 
return  by  first  opportunity.  Commodore  Warren  has  aken 
loobbs  more  of  powder  out  of  the  Annapolis  storeship,  to  be 
replaced  with  the  other  5obbs  in  Boston,  wch  I  promised 
to  recommend  to  your  Excellency.  The  principal  French 
officers  wth  their  families  &  several  of  the  inhabitants  are  at 
last,  not  without  difficulty,  embarked  on  board  the  Lances- 
ton,  and  several  transports  are  saild  for  Rochfort  in  France 
yesterday,  being  about  1200. 

Monsieur  Duchambon  at  going  off  insisted  on  a  ratification 
of  the  capitulation  which  was  accordingly  made,  copy  of 
which  have  now  also  inclosed  to  your  Excellency.  I  am  much 
concern'd  for  a  seasonable  supply  of  provisions.  There 
being  many  necessaries  on  board  some  of  the  prizes  here 
which  the  army  are  in  great  want  of,  it  was  thought  advise- 
able that  proper  officers  should  be  appointed  for  the  legal 
tryal  &  condemnation  of  them,  and  I  have  joind  with  Com- 
modore Warren  in  erecting  a  Court  of  Admiralty  for  that 
purpose  for  the  present  exigency. 

Capt  Rous  is  to  sail  for  Engd  wth  his  dispatches  to-morrow. 
Capt  Becket  is  arrived  here  from  the  Gut  of  Canso,  and  in- 
forms that  the  Rhode  Island  sloop  wth  Donahew  and  him- 
self met  wth  four  vessells  full  of  French  &  Indns  in  the  Bay  of 
Verte,  suppos'd  to  be  those  from  Annapolis,  wth  whom  they 
had  a  skirmish,  but  that  they  retreated  to  the  head  of  the 
Bay  and  escaped. 

Your  Excellency  will  please  to  observe  that  in  the  letter 
to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  we  mention  our  thoughts  of  a 
treaty  with  the  Indians,  and  we  imagine  it  might  be  of  good 
consequence,  if  the  Indians  taken  by  Capt  Donahew  should 

233 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

be  sent  here.  Since  the  above,  I  have  your  Excellency's 
favour  pr  Giddins,  and  observe  wth  the  greatest  gratitude 
the  kind  concern  &  care  of  your  Excellency  &  our  country  in 
the  supplies  sent,  wch  are  not  unseasonable  tho'  we  are  so 
happy  as  to  be  within  the  city.  The  army  is  yet  in  great 
want  of  shoes,  hose,  and  cloathing  of  all  kinds.  I  shall  pay 
all  regard  to  your  Excellency's  recommendations,  &  have 
delivered  your  messages  to  the  Brigadiers  &  Colo  Bradstreet. 
Was  it  not  for  the  reason  before  mentioned,  and  that  I 
am  afraid  it  would  make  an  uneasiness  in  the  army,  I  should 
take  the  first  opportunity  to  repair  to  N.  Engd.  I  am,  wth 
all  duty  &  respect. 

Your  Excellency's  most  obedt  and  most  humb.  servt. 

W.  P. 

Louisbourg,  July  4th,  1745. 

His  Excellency  Govr  Shirley,  &c.,  Sec,  &c. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL^ 

Boston,  July  7,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  have  the  pleasure  of  receiving  by  Capt  Bennet  your 
account  of  the  reduction  of  Cape  Breton  with  its  depend- 
encies to  the  obedience  of  his  Majesty,  upon  which  I  con- 
gratulate you  and  the  other  officers  and  the  whole  army 
under  your  command,  who  by  their  late  bravery  and  un- 
parallell'd  services  before  Louisbourg  have  lay'd  a  most 
lasting  foundation  for  the  wealth,  peace,  and  prosperity  of 
this  country,  and  acquir'd  an  honour  to  themselves  and 
glory  to  the  New  England  arms  which  must  make  a  shining 
part  of  the  English  history  to  the  latest  posterity. 

I  approve  of  the  terms  of  the  capitulation  ^  which  you  and 
Commodore  Warren  granted  to  the  enemy ;  for  had  Louis- 
bourg been  carried  by  storm  the  conquest  must  in  all  human 

'  Printed  :  6  Mass,  Hist.  Soc.  10,  320. 

^  See  Pepperrell  to  Shirley,  July  4,  and  the  terms  of  the  capitula- 
tion, June  16,  1745,  on  p.  239. 

234 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

probability  have  cost  the  lives  of  looo  or  1500  brave  New- 
England  men,  which  I  should  have  esteem'd  an  irreparable 
loss,  whereas  the  army's  disappointment  of  the  plunder  of 
the  town  may  be  recompens'd  to  'em  by  their  King  and 
country,  for  obtaining  which  and  every  thing  else  in  my 
power  for  their  service  my  best  endeavours,  they  may  de- 
pend upon  it,  shall  be  exerted. 

It  is  a  special  favour  of  the  Divine  Providence  which  has 
most  remarkably  attended  our  forces  thro  the  whole  course 
of  this  enterprize  that  this  formidable  fortress  has  been  gain'd 
with  the  loss  of  only  about  100  men,  as  you  inform  me.  And 
I  hope  the  whole  army  will  most  thankfully  and  devoutly 
acknowledge  it  to  the  Lord  of  Hosts,  their  protector,  who 
has  thus  graciously  subdued  their  enemies  for  'em,  as  I 
design  their  brethren  in  this  Province  shall  do  in  a  day  of 
solemn  thanksgiving  to  be  observ'd  on  the  i8th  instant. 

It  will  be  necessary  for  you  to  stay  with  the  forces  at 
Louisbourg  'till  I  shall  receive  his  Majesty's  pleasure  con- 
cerning it,  which  I  hope  I  may  do  speedily,  and  I  now  send 
you  orders  accordingly ;  and  I  doubt  not  but  the  same 
principles  of  loyalty  to  their  King  and  love  to  their  country, 
which  first  led  the  troops  to  make  this  glorious  acquisition, 
will  still  warm  their  hearts  and  make  'em  desirous  to  pre- 
serve it  from  falling  again  into  the  enemy's  hands,  before  his 
Majesty  shall  have  garrison'd  it,  and  that  they  will  continue 
to  yield  till  that  time  a  most  dutiful  and  willing  obedience 
to  your  command,  and  particularly  that  they  will  not  sully 
the  honour  of  their  arms  by  any  murmurs  or  discontent  or 
strife  among  'em.  There  is  honour  enough  gain'd  by  their 
late  services  for  ten  times  their  number  of  troops  to  share 
with  satisfaction. 

I  design,  if  his  Majesty's  service  does  not  indispensably 
require  my  attendance  at  Boston,  to  come  to  the  army  the 
latter  end  of  this  month,  and  attend  the  service  there  for 
five  or  six  weeks,  and  would  have  the  Massachusetts  frigate 
come  without  delay  to  Boston  to  fetch  me,  if  the  Commodore 
can  spare  it.  Mrs  Shirley  will  come  with  me,  and  perhaps 
two  or  three  more,  and  should  I  go  in  the  Lark,  some  of  the 

235 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

company  which  is  to  attend  on  Mrs  Warren  must  be  shut 
out  of  that  vessell,  which  I  should  be  loath  to  have  done. 
But  I  shall  come  out  in  company  with  the  Lark.  I  am,  Sir,  to 
yourself  and  the  whole  army, 

A  most  assur'd  friend  and  servant. 

W.  Shirley. 
Honble  Gen  Pepperill. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELLi 

Boston,  July  7th,  1745. 
Sir, 

You  will  perceive  that  the  inclos'd  is  calculated  for  the 
army ;  and  I  accordingly  desire  you  will  order  it  to  be  read 
at  the  head  of  every  regiment  by  some  person  of  a  distinct 
and  audible  voice. 

I  have  carefully  noted  the  contents  of  your  two  last  by 
Bennet,  and  shall  pay  a  just  regard  to  'em.  It  is  with 
infinite  satisfaction  that  I  congratulate  you  upon  the  success 
of  the  forces  under  your  command,  who  deserve  largely 
of  his  Majesty's  favour  for  their  extraordinary  services  to 
him  and  their  country,  for  which  last  they  have  gain'd 
immortal  honour  by  their  behaviour  under  your  most 
worthy  conduct,  which  ought  to  render  you  dear  to  every 
man  who  wishes  well  to  New  England,  and  will,  I  doubt 
not,  recommend  you  to  his  Majesty's  favour. 

In  the  midst  of  this  joy  it  is  no  small  damp  to  me  to  find 
that  Mr  Warren  designs  to  take  upon  himself  the  chief 
command  on  shoar,  the  attempting  which  I  am  satisfy'd 
will  produce  great  discontent  here  as  well  as  in  the  army, 
and  be  very  prejudicial  to  his  Majesty's  service  in  all  the 
colonies  of  New  England  by  putting  an  end  to  expeditions 
from  hence  for  his  Majesty's  service.  I  have  already  ob- 
serv'd  the  seeds  of  great  discontent,  both  here  and  in  letters 
from  the  camp,  arising  from  a  jealousy  of  this  scheme,  and 
they  will  soon  burst  out,  I  am  affraid,  into  an  unquenchable 

^  Printed :  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  322. 
236 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

flame,  If  it  is  attempted  to  be  carry'd  into  execution.  And 
I  can't  but  think  it  will  be  censur'd  by  his  Majesty  in  Council 
as  an  unwarrantable  usurpation,  in  case  the  dispute  should 
come  to  be  decided  there,  as  it  must  finally  if  it  should  arise 
to  a  dispute. 

What  points  you  may  have  given  up  to  the  Commodore 
I  can't  judge  at  this  distance,  but  observe  that  the  order 
of  your  signing  your  respective  names  is  alter'd,  and  the 
direction  from  Mr  Duchambon  to  you  is  inverted,  the  Com- 
modore being  now  first  nam'd  in  the  instruments.  If  he 
should  offer  to  assume  a  command  over  you,  which  he  must 
do  if  he  takes  the  chief  command  of  the  place  upon  himself, 
it  will  be  something  extraordinary  indeed,  and  what  I  suppose 
you  will  not  submit  to,  as  it  must  detract  from  the  honour 
of  his  Majesty's  commission  to  me,  under  which  you  are 
appointed.  To  say  the  truth  I  am  In  great  pain  for  the 
mischiefs  that  will  ensue  to  his  Majesty's  service  upon  such 
an  attempt,  which  I  have  mention'd  to  the  Commodore, 
and  to  prevent  the  danger  of  'em  Is  the  chief  reason  of  my 
coming  to  Louisbourg.  You  must  not  have  the  least  thought 
of  quitting  Louisbourg  till  we  know  his  Majesty's  pleasure 
concerning  it.  If  you  should  desire  to  do  It,  there  will  be  the 
utmost  confusion  and  disorder,  and  your  King  and  country 
and  own  honour  will  suffer  exceedingly. 

I  recelv'd  advice  last  night  from  the  Governour  of  Con- 
necticut that  the  Assembly  there  had  voted  300  men  more 
(besides  the  200  lately  voted)  to  be  forthwith  rals'd  for  the 
service  of  the  expedition,  provided  I  can  procure  the  convoy 
of  their  own  Colony  sloop  for  'em,  or  some  other  vessell  of 
force,  which  I  hope  the  Commodore  will  dispatch  away  to 
New  London  as  soon  as  may  be. 

The  French  have  made  great  rejoicing  at  Martinique  upon 
news  they  have  heard  that  four  French  men  of  war  have  enter'd 
Louisbourg,  and  rals'd  the  siege  and  klU'd  the  Commodore. 
But  I  hope  he  will  live  to  carry  one  of  the  most  principal 
flags  in  England  into  their  harbour,  as  he  has  carry'd  his 
Commodore's  Into  that  of  Louisbourg.  He  Is  too  valuable 
a  man  for  his  country  to  lose  yet  awhile.     I  have  as  high 

237 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

an  opinion  of  his  merit  as  you  have,  but  he  is  certainly  mis- 
taken In  the  point  I  have  before  mentlon'd.     I  am,  Sir, 
Your  most  faithful  friend  and  servant. 

W.  Shirley. 

Pray  excuse  me  to  Brigadiers  Waldo  and  Dwight  and 
Colonel  Bradstreet  till  next  ship.  The  Lark  Is,  I  believe, 
coming  in.  I  shall  hope  for  an  exact  account  of  the  stores 
and  state  of  Louisbourg,  &ca,  by  her. 

P.S.  None  of  the  bomb  shells  are  prov'd,  so  you  must 
prove  'em  there. 

Honble  Genl.  Pepperlll. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL  i 

Boston,  July  9,  1745. 
Sir, 

It  was  thought  best,  when  the  Caesar  arrlvd,  that  she 
should  be  immediately  dismlss'd  the  Service  but  when  we 
were  inform'd  that  the  Sea  men  enlisted  at  Rhode  Island 
for  the  Vigilant  were  coming  to  Boston  to  be  transported 
to  the  Fleet  it  was  thought  proper  again  to  employ  the  Snow 
for  that  Service.  And  the  Committee  of  War  have  agreed 
with  the  Owners  both  of  the  Snow  &  the  Ship  Fame  that  said 
Vessels  may  be  discharg'd  three  days  after  the  Snow  shall 
join  the  Fleet  and  their  pay  is  then  to  cease  whereas  by  the 
first  agreement  they  were  to  continue  in  Pay  till  they  re- 
turn'd  to  Newport.  I  am  of  opinion  as  these  Vessels  are 
upon  a  most  extravagant  hire  they  should  be  dismlss'd  as 
soon  as  ever  the  Service  will  admit  of  it  and  as  they  purpose  to 
proceed  on  a  Cruize  they  will  at  least  expect  all  the  men  they 
brought  from  Newport  with  them,  and  it  is  agreeable  to  the 
promise  I  made  the  Owner,  but  a  number  of  the  men  that 
were  taken  out  of  this  Ship  &  Snow  to  mann  his  Majestys 

^  Original,  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
B,  p.  141. 

238 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Ships  were  Inhabitants  of  this  Province  &  enlisted  at  Cape 
Ann  and  they  had  the  promise  of  the  Government  that  they 
should  not  be  compell'd  to  proceed  on  any  other  Cruize 
but  should  return  &  be  discharg'd  with  the  other  Seamen  in 
the  Service  of  the  Province  at  the  end  of  the  Expedition,  so 
I  think  the  Commanders  of  these  two  Vessels  have  no  Pre- 
tence to  any  of  those  men  unless  they  are  willing  to  enlist 
with  them. 

I  am  Sir, 

Your  Assured  Friend  and 
Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Honble  Lieutent  Genl  Pepperill. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE   LORDS  OF  TRADE ' 

Boston,  July  lo,  1745. 
My  Lords, 

A.  I  have  now  the  Honour  to  congratulate  your  Lordships 
upon  the  Reduction  of  Cape  Breton  with  it's  Dependencies 
to  the  Obedience  of  his  Majesty,  which  was  compleated  by 
the  Surrender  of  Louisbourg  on  the  17th  of  last  Month  upon 
Terms  of  the  French  Garrison's  being  permitted  to  march 
out  of  the  Town  with  their  Arms  and  the  other  Honours  of 
Warr,  and  all  the  Inhabitants  to  carry  off  their  Effects  and 
be  transported  to  France  at  his  Majesty's  Expence.  A 
Copy  of  the  Ratification  of  the  Terms  of  the  Capitulation 
made  by  the  Enemy  I  inclose  to  your  Lordships.^ 

^  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O,  5,  885,  p.  153.     A  letter  to  Newcastle  on  the 
same  subject  and  of  the  same  date  is  in  C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  197. 
^A"CoPY  OF  THE  Ratification  of  the  Capitulation  made 

FOR  the  Surrender  of  Louisbourg  and  its  Dependencies" 

follows : 

Ratification  of  the  terms  of  Capitulation  made  &  concluded 
on  for  the  surrender  of  Lewisbourg  &  territories  adjacent  to  the 
obedience  of  his  Brittanick  Majesty,  June  i6th,  1745,  O.  S. 

On  the  part  of  his  Most  Christian  Majesty  it  is  agreed  &  con- 

239 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Our  Battery  upon  the  Light  House  point  erected  with 
incredible  Labour  to  our  Troops  thro  the  Steepness  of  the 
Hill  and  the  bad  ground,  over  which  the  Artillery  was 
transported  by  Hand,  distress'd  the  Enemy  so  exceedingly 

sented  that  the  city  of  Lewlsbourg  on  the  island  of  Cape  Breton, 
with  the  fortifications  &  batteries  thereof,  also  the  fortifications, 
batteries  &  territories  adjacent,  together  with  all  the  artillery, 
arms,  &  stores  of  war  thereunto  belonging  be  forthwith  surren- 
dered &  delivered  up  to  the  obedience  of  the  Crown  of  Great  Britain, 
&  that  all  the  subjects  of  his  Brittanick  Majesty  who  are  prisoners 
in  Lewisbourg  shall  be  immediately  deliv'd  up,  &  that  none  of  the 
officers,  soldiers,  nor  inhabitants  in  Lewisbourg  who  are  subjects 
of  the  French  King  shall  take  up  arms  against  his  Brittanick 
Majesty,  nor  any  of  his  allies  untill  after  the  expiration  of  the 
full  term  of  twelve  months  from  this  time. 

On  the  part  of  his  Brittanick  Majesty  it  is  agreed  &  consented 
that  upon  sd  surrender  &  due  performance  of  every  article  of  the 
aforesd  premises  to  be  made  &  compleated  as  soon  as  possible,  the 
following  articles  shall  be  allowed  &  granted,  viz. 

That  all  the  subjects  of  the  French  King  now  in  sd  city  &  terri- 
tory shall  be  treated  with  the  utmost  humanity  &  have  their  per- 
sonal estates  secured  to  them  &  have  liberty  to  transport  them- 
selves &  sd  effects  to  any  part  of  the  French  King's  dominions  in 
Europe. 

That  if  the  vessells  in  the  harbour  of  Lewisbourg  belonging  to 
the  French  there  shall  be  found  insufficient  for  the  transportation 
of  their  persons  &  proposed  effects  to  France,  such  a  further  num- 
ber shall  be  provided  on  his  Britannick  Majesty's  accot  as  may 
be  sufficient  for  that  purpose,  also  any  provisions  necessary  for  the 
voiage  that  they  cannot  furnish  themselves  with. 

That  all  the  commission  officers  belonging  to  the  garrison  & 
the  inhabitants  of  the  town  may  remain  in  their  houses  with  their 
familys  &  enjoy  the  free  exercise  of  their  religion,  &  no  person  shall 
be  suffer'd  to  misuse  or  molest  any  of  them,  till  such  time  as  they 
can  conveniently  be  transported  to  France. 

That  the  non-commission  officers  &  soldiers  shall  immediately 
upon  the  surrender  of  the  town  &  fortresses  be  put  on  board  some 
of  his  Brittanick  Majesty's  ships  till  they  can  also  be  transported 
to  France. 

That  all  the  sick  &  wounded  now  in  Lewisbourg,  subjects  of 
the  French  King  shall  be  taken  care  of  in  the  same  manner  with 
those  of  his  Britanick  Majesty. 

That  the  commander-in-chief  now  in  the  garrison  shall  have 
leave  to  send  off  two  cover'd  waggons,  to  be  inspected  only  by  one 

340 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

in  their  Island  Battery,  particularly  with  the  Bombs  thrown 
from  it  (as  the  General  informs  me)  and  the  incessant  Fire 
from  the  Grand  Battery  and  our  other  Batteries,  which 
was  greatly  increas'd  on  the  i6th  of  June  beyond  what  it 
was  before,  was  so  insupportable  to  the  Enemy  that  they 
were  confin'd  to  their  cover'd  ways,  and  some  drove  out  of 
the  Island  Battery  into  the  Sea ;  all  which  besides  the  An- 
noyance from  our  Musquetry,  that  made  it  dangerous  for 
any  man  to  shew  his  head  above  the  Ramparts,  brought 
the  Enemy  on  the  same  day  to  beat  a  Parley  and  desire  a 
Suspension  of  Hostilities,  'till  they  could  draw  up  Terms  of 
a  Capitulation,  which  was  compleated  the  day  following, 
and  Possession  of  the  Town  and  Batteries  deliver'd  up ; 
the  former  of  which  (as  the  General  and  Commodore  in- 
form me)  is  greatly  damag'd  in  all  it's  Buildings,  and  among 
the  latter  the  Demilune  or  Circular  Battery  (the  most  im- 
portant one  within  the  Town)  is  quite  ruin'd,  &  the  draw- 
bridge. West  Gate  and  adjoining  Wall  (in  which  Mr  Bigot 
the  Intendant  says  in  a  Letter  to  a  French  Officer,  a  prisoner 
here,  a  practicable  Breach  was  made)  extremely  shatter'd ; 
But  the  Troops  and  Seamen  are  diligently  employ'd,  I 
understand,  in  repairing  the  Fortifications  and  Buildings. 

It  happen'd  when  the  Enemy  sent  out  their  Flag  of  Truce, 
that  the  General  &  Commodore  were  together  on  shoar, 
and  had  agreed  upon  making  a  general  attack  by  Land  and 
Sea  the  next  day,  in  order  to  which  Captain  Cornwal  now 

officer  of  his  Brittanick  Majesty's  that  no  warlike  stores  be  con- 
tain'd  therein. 

That  if  there  are  any  persons  in  the  town  or  garrison  who  shall 
desire  not  to  be  seen  by  the  English  they  shall  be  permitted  to 
go  off  mask'd. 

That  the  troops  of  the  French  King  now  in  Lewisbourg  may 
march  out  of  the  garrison  with  their  arms  &  colours,  and  be  then 
deliver'd  to  the  English  till  said  troops  arrive  in  France,  at  which 
time  to  have  them  returned  to  them. 

In  witness  whereof  we  the  subscribers  have  hereunto  inter- 
changeably set  our  hands  &  seals  in  the  city  of  Lewisbourg  upon 
the  island  of  Cape  Breton,  this  20th  day  of  June,  1745,  O.  S. 

(Seal)  P.  Warren.        (Seal)  W.  Pepperrell.         (Seal)  DuChambon. 
VOL.  I  —  R  241 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHlULEY 

here  in  the  Hector  informs  me  they  had  begun  to  clear  their 
ships  ;  But  I  think  it  happy  that  this  Design  was  prevented 
from  being  put  in  Execution  by  the  Enemy's  Capitulating; 
For  as  the  number  of  effective  men  under  Arms  in  the  Town 
was  more  than  half  that  of  our  Troops  (the  Enemy  having 
about  three  days  before  the  Landing  of  the  Troops,  which 
had  been  detain'd  at  Canso  for  near  three  Weeks  by  the 
uncommon  Quantities  of  Ice,  that  choak'd  up  Chappeau- 
rouge  Bay  and  prevented  their  Landing  there  at  the  time 
appointed,  drawn  into  Louisbourg  from  their  out  Settle- 
ments lOCX)  Men,  occasion'd  by  their  discovering  our  Cruizers 
sent  to  cut  off  Provisions  and  Intelligence  from  getting  into 
the  Harbour)  it  must  have  been  hard  work  to  have  carry'd 
it  by  Storm,  tho  I  make  no  great  doubt  but  it  would  have 
been  done  had  it  been  attempted,  as  it  seems  evident,  from 
the  Enemy's  never  daring  to  make  any  strong  Sallies  to 
hinder  the  approaches  of  our  Batteries,  that  they  were  in 
such  Terror  of  our  Troops  that  it  is  probable  their  defence 
would  not  have  been  very  obstinate  against  'em  when  as- 
sisted by  the  Ships ;  and  to  this  may  be  added  their  Stock 
of  Powder  within  the  Town  was  near  spent.  Upon  the 
whole,  I  hope  when  it  is  consider'd  that  3,600  raw  New 
England  Troops,  supported  by  His  Majesty's  Ships  to  the 
seaward,  have  reduc'd  one  of  the  French  King's  strongest 
and  most  important  Fortresses,  having  in  it  a  Garrison  of 
near  600  regular  Troops,  and  about  1400  Effective  Men 
under  Arms  besides,  with  the  Loss  of  not  quite  lOO  men  on 
our  side,  and  killing  near  the  same  number  of  the  Enemy 
within  the  Walls  during  the  Siege  (many  of  them  with  their 
Small  Arms)  I  may  be  permitted  to  say  in  Justice  to  His 
Majesty's  New  England  Subjects  that  their  behaviour  has 
done  no  dishonour  to  his  Arms. 

B.  To  what  I  have  in  former  Letters  taken  the  Liberty  to 
observe  to  your  Lordships  concerning  the  Importance  which 
the  possession  of  this  Place  may  be  to  His  Majesty,  I  begg 
leave  to  add  that  it  will  be  further  evident  from  the  Con- 
sideration of  the  Value,  which  the  French  set  upon  it  whilst 
it  was  in  their  Possession,  which  appears  from  the  exceeding 

242 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

large  sums  of  money  lay'd  out  by  the  French  King  in  forti- 
fying it;  and  how  well  it  has  answer'd  that  Expence  the 
surprizing  Growth  of  the  French  Codfishery  and  proportion- 
able diminution  of  our  own,  both  chiefly  depending  upon 
their  Possession  of  Cape  Breton,  will  in  part  shew.  The 
inclos'd  account,  which  I  have  procur'd  and  is  I  believe  as 
carefully  collected  and  as  authentick,  as  we  can  obtain,  as 
well  as  a  moderate  one,  and  which  computes  the  profits  of 
the  French  Codfishery  at  about  One  Million  Sterling  pr  anii. 
is  a  Proof  of  the  former,  and  the  Loss  of  a  Silver  Currency 
in  New  England,  and  it's  great  Load  of  Debts,  chiefly  oc- 
casion'd  by  the  Decay  and  Ruin  of  it's  Fishery  since  the 
Peace  of  Utrecht,  is  so  of  the  latter.  I  omit  mentioning 
the  Influence,  which  this  fishery  that  first  open'd  the  French 
Trade  in  the  Mediterranean,  still  continues  to  have  upon 
all  their  Trade  in  General  in  that  Sea.  But  what  seems 
still  more  considerable  is  the  great  Number  of  Men  (twenty 
seven  Thousand)  necessarily  employ'd  in  the  French  fishery 
which  may  be  esteem'd  a  Principal  Support  of  the  Navy  of 
France,  and  if  not  only  taken  from  them  but  added  to  the 
Nurseries  of  Seamen  for  the  Royal  Navy  of  Great  Brittain, 
must  still  make  it  of  more  Consequence  to  the  Brittish 
Crown. 

Louisbourg  Harbour  may  be  also  call'd  the  key  of  the 
French  and  Brittish  Northern  Colonies  and  is  consequently 
the  most  convenient  Harbour  for  Privateers  to  be  fitted  out 
from  and  Rendezvous  in,  and  is  a  good  shelter  for  the  French 
Trade  in  their  Passage  to  and  from  the  East  and  West 
Indies,  and  the  only  Harbour  from  whence  they  can  con- 
veniently fit  out  Armaments  for  Expeditions  against  His 
Majesty's  Northern  Colonies,  particularly  against  Nova 
Scotia,  the  Eastern  Settlements  within  this  Province,  and 
the  province  of  New  Hampshire  (which  not  only  abound 
with  Provisions,  but  contain  all  the  Nurseries  of  White 
Pine  trees  found  upon  Trial  in  the  Kings  yards  to  be  fit  for 
the  service  of  the  Royal  Navy)  and  if  gain'd  from  His 
Majesty  by  the  Enemy,  as  they  were  in  Imminent  Danger 
of  being  last  year  by  the  Attempt  upon  Annapolis  Royal 

243 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

fitted  out  from  Louisbourg,  will  give  the  French  such  a  foot- 
ing upon  this  Continent  (which  may  be  justly  looked  upon 
in  its  Increase  to  be  an  inexhaustible  Source  of  Wealth  and 
Power  to  Great  Brittain)  as  will  put  'em  some  time  or  other 
upon  disputing  the  Mastery  of  the  whole  of  it  with  the 
Brittish  Crown.  The  only  thing  which  I  shall  presume 
further  to  observe  to  your  Lordships  upon  this  Head  is  that 
Louisbourg  in  case  His  Majesty  shall  think  fit  to  Garrison 
the  City,  and  station  a  Squadron  of  Ships  of  Warr  in  the 
Harbour,  during  the  proper  Season,  is  so  situated  as  that 
besides  securing  the  Navigation  and  Fishery  in  these  Seas, 
and  protecting  the  Brittish  Northern  Colonies  against  the 
Enemy,  and  facilitating  any  Attempts  to  drive  the  French 
wholly  off  from  this  Continent,  it  would  by  it's  vicinity  to 
the  Brittish  Colonies,  and  being  the  Key  of  them,  at  least 
of  the  most  principal  of  'em,  give  the  Crown  of  Great  Brit- 
tain a  most  absolute  hold  and  Command  of  'em,  if  ever 
there  should  a  time  come  when  they  should  grow  Restive 
and  dispos'd  to  shake  off  their  Dependency  upon  their 
Mother  Country ;  the  possibility  of  which  I  must  freely 
own  seems  to  me  from  the  Observations  I  have  been  able 
to  make  upon  the  spot,  at  the  Distance  of  some  Centuries 
farther  off  than  I  have  heard  it  does  to  some  Gentlemen  at 
Home. 

C.  I  shall  continue  to  exert  my  best  Endeavours  in  every 
Respect  for  securing  this  important  acquisition  to  His 
Majesty  'till  I  shall  receive  his  Royal  Pleasure  concerning 
it,  which  I  hope  I  shall  have  the  Honour  to  do  as  soon  as 
conveniently  may  be,  together  with  Directions  concerning 
Canso,  which  I  am  inform'd  affords  much  the  best  Fishery 
for  small  vessells  of  any  place  in  North  America. 

D.  As  it  seems  to  me  that  the  best  Prospect  of  effecting 
a  speedy  Settlement  of  Cape  Breton  with  his  Majesty's 
Subjects  is  that  of  doing  it  with  Fishermen  and  others 
chiefly  from  this  Province,  I  shall  exert  all  the  Influence  and 
Encouragement  in  my  Power  for  promoting  it,  and  would 
humbly  submit  it  to  Your  Lordships  Consideration  whether, 
since  the  Troops  are  disapointed  of  the  Plunder  of  Louis- 

244 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

bourg,  if  his  Majesty  would  be  pleas'd  to  distribute  part  of 
the  conquer'd  Lands  among  such  of  the  Captors  as  shall 
settle  upon  the  Island,  it  might  not  forward  the  Settlement 
of  it,  and  encourage  his  Subjects,  Inhabitants  of  these 
Colonies,  to  enter  into  like  Attempts  for  his  Service  upon 
any  future  Occasions.  And  if  His  Majesty  should  approve 
of  this  Method  of  Settlement,  and  it  should  succeed,  the 
Neighbourhood  of  this  Province  (being  no  more  than  about 
1 80  Leagues  distant  from  Cape  Breton)  and  it's  near  Affin- 
ity to  the  New  planted  Colony  might  be  of  advantage  to  it 
in  it's  Growth,  Trade  and  Support,  of  which  the  timely 
Succours  sent  last  year  to  Annapolis  Royal,  and  the  reduc- 
tion of  this  Island  itself  by  Forces  sent  chiefly  from  this 
Province  are  some  Proof. 

I  presume  to  mention  to  your  Lordships  under  this  Head 
that  an  allowance  of  the  same  Liberty  of  Conscience,  which 
is  granted  in  Religious  matters  to  the  Inhabitants  of  this 
Province  by  the  Royal  Charter,  would  be  a  favourable  Cir- 
cumstance for  drawing  Settlers  from  hence,  where  the  Inhab- 
itants are  chiefly  Dissenters  from  the  Church  of  England. 

A  Civil  Government  seems  essentially  necessary  for  the 
Settlement  or  at  least  the  Growth  of  an  English  Colony  in 
these  parts ;  and  I  understand  from  the  Commodore's 
Letters  to  me  that  he  has  given  it  as  his  opinion  that  the 
General  and  himself  have  Power  to  erect  a  Court  of  Ad- 
miralty at  Louisbourg,  which  I  hear  is  done  :  But  as  I  doubt 
some  Inconveniences  may  arise  from  a  Want  of  proper 
Powers  in  either  of  'em  to  do  that,  and  I  am  clearly  of 
opinion  that  it  appertains  solely  to  His  Majesty  to  erect 
Courts  of  Judicature  in  a  conquered  Territory,  I  shall,  to 
prevent  the  Perplexities,  which  may  arise  upon  unneces- 
sary Condemnations  in  a  Void  Court  of  Admiralty,  advise 
the  Suspending  of  these  Steps.  The  Commodore  also 
writes  me  word  that  he  has  given  it  as  his  Opinion  that  the 
General  and  he  may  grant  Houses  and  Lands  to  Settlers, 
'till  his  Majesty's  Pleasure  shall  be  known ;  But  as  I  think 
this  also  is  a  mistake,  I  shall  endeavour  to  prevent  their 
making  any  Grants,  and  I  hope  none  are  yet  made. 

24s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

The  Commodore  and  General  have  likewise  both  of  'em 
in  their  Letters  to  me  mention'd  it  as  a  proper  Encourage- 
ment that  Louisbourg  should  be  made  a  Free  Port ;  But  as 
that  would  defeat  the  Intent  of  the  Principal  Act  of  Trade, 
whereby  Great  Britain  is  made  the  Staple  of  all  European 
Commodities  imported  into  her  Plantations,  and  the  Bene- 
fit of  her  Plantation  Trade  is  secur'd  to  herself,  and  break 
the  main  Ligament,  whereby  the  Brittish  Colonies  are  made 
dependent  upon  their  Mother  Country,  I  doubt  the  Granting 
of  such  a  Privilege  would  be  of  dangerous  Consequence  in 
these  parts,  where  the  spirit  of  illicit  Trade  prevails  too 
much  allready  :  But  your  Lordships  will  be  much  better 
Judges  of  the  Conveniency  or  Inconveniency  of  such  an 
Exemption,  if  ever  it  should  come  under  Consideration  than 
my  self.  If  the  Privilege  of  being  free  from  any  Suits  for 
Debt,  which  has  been  frequently  granted  to  the  Settlers  of 
new  Colonies,  should  be  thought  proper  to  be  indulg'd  for 
a  Term  of  Years  to  the  Settlers  of  the  New  Colony  of  Louis- 
bourg, that,  I  believe,  would  contribute  to  the  Settlement  of 
it  from  hence,  as  well  as  from  other  Parts ;  I  should  not 
have  proposed  this  did  not  the  Circumstances  of  the  times 
seem  to  require  a  speedy  Settlement  of  the  Place. 
I  am  with  the  highest  Regard 
My  Lords, 
Your  most  humble  and  most 

Obedient  Servant 

W.   Shirley. 

Rt  Honble  Lords  Commissrs  of  Trade  &ca 

Endorsed  : 

Massachusets 
Letter  from  Mr  Shirley,  Govr  of  the  Massachusets  Bay, 
to  the  Board,  dated  at  Boston,  the  loth  of  July  1745. 

Reed  Septbr  17th         1 
Read  Septbr  the  19th  f  ^'^^^ 


246 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE  PENOBSCOT  AND 
NORRIDGEWALK  INDIANS.^ 

Boston,  July  12,  1745. 
Good  Friends, 

As  we  have  agreed  to  give  one  another  Advice  of  all  that 
happens,  I  now  Acquaint  you  that  Heaven  has  favour'd 
our  righteous  Cause  against  the  French  who  have  unjustly 
made  war  upon  us,  and  Louisbourg  with  the  Island  of  Cape 
Breton  was  the  17th  of  June  last,  delivered  into  our  hands,^ 
where  we  have  now  4000  Soldiers,  Masters  of  the  place,  & 
ten  large  Men  of  War  besides  many  smaller  Ships  of  War 
there,  and  We  have  also  taken  a  large  Man  of  War  from  the 
French  carrying  near  Seventy  Guns,  and  between  five  and 
six  hundred  men  besides  a  great  Number  of  Merchant  Ves- 
sels, and  We  have  now  brought  to  Boston  above  Seven 
hundred  French  prisoners,  and  above  Two  Thousand  French 
prisoners  at  Louisbourg  and  aboard  our  Ships  of  War  will 
be  sent  home  to  France  immediately.  This  Intelligence  we 
Send  you  that  you  may  not  be  deluded  by  the  French  or  St 
Johns  &  Nova  Scotia  Indians  that  may  Sollicit  you  to  break 
your  Friendship  with  us  to  your  own  ruin.  We  have  been 
your  faithful  Friends,  and  your  Traffick  with  us  has  been 
much  more  for  your  Advantage  than  your  Trade  with  the 
French  and  you  may  still  live  easy  with  us,  &  free  from  the 
distress  &  danger  of  War  if  you  please  but  if  not,  &  you  will 
let  the  French  &  the  Indians  in  their  Interest  deceive  & 
Seduce  you  &  you  will  perfidiously  break  your  Solemn 
League  with  us,  we  doubt  not  but  the  Great  God  who  is  the 
Avenger  of  all  such  Wickedness  and  has  so  remarkably 
punished  our  Treacherous  Enemys  the  French  will  stand 

^  A  copy  of  this  letter  was  sent  to  Governor  Law  of  Connecticut 
and  to  Governor  Wentworth  of  New  Hampshire.  See :  Law 
Papers,  i,  326,  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  11,  337;  Belknap  Papers,  New 
Hampshire  Hist.  Soc.  i,  238;  N.  H.  Prov.  Papers,  5,  942. 

^  See  Shirley  to  Bradbury,  July  22,  post,  p.  253.  The  news  of  the 
Colonial  victory  did  not  reach  the  Indians  in  season  to  prevent  their 
outbreak. 

247 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

by  us  &  give  us  Success  for  the  punishing  your  perfidious- 
ness,  but  if  you  are  willing  to  Enjoy  the  Benefits  of  peace 
with  us,  we  Shall  Expect  that  you  will  Send  two  or  three  of 
your  chief  Captains  to  Confirm  the  Friendship  between 
Us,  and  if  any  of  your  people  stand  in  fear  of  the  French  and 
therefore  want  protection  for  themselves  and  their  Familys 
and  will  come  up  to  Boston,  we  will  take  care  of  them,  I 
Expect  that  you  Send  me  your  answer  without  delay. 
I  remain  your  good  Friend 

W.    Shirley. 

To  the  Sachem  and  others  of  the  Penobscot  and  Norridg- 
walk  Indians. 

Copy  Examd  pr  J  Willard  Secry 


JOSIAH  WILLARD  TO  JONATHAN  LAW 

[Extract  ^] 
Sir, 

His  Excellency  has  directed  me  ...  to  inform  your 
Honour  that  the  Western  Indians  have  killed  two  Men,  one 
at  Ashuelet  &  the  other  at  the  Narraganset  Town  Number 
Four ;  And  therefore  His  Excellency  desires  that  you  would 
please  to  give  Orders  that  your  Soldiers  designed  for  the 
Protection  of  our  People  in  the  County  of  Hampshire  may 
repair  thither  without  Delay.     I  am 

Sir,  Your  Honours  most  obedient 

Humble  Servant 

J.    Willard.^ 

^Original,  Conn.  Hist.  Soc,  Law  Papers,  i,  318.  Printed  :  ibid. 
Coll.  II,  338.  To  this  request  Law  replied  on  July  16  from 
Milford : 

"Sr  This  day  I  reed  Mr  Secrtt  Willards  of  the  12th  Instant 
and  by  an  Express  have  given  notice  to  the  Comtee  of  Warr  att 
Hartford  to  observe  the  Orders  of  the  Assembly  in  such  Case 
provided  and  doubt  not  but  Coll  Stoddard  will  also  apply  to  them" 
(Law  Papers,  i,  324). 

2  Josiah  Willard,  son  of  Rev.  Samuel  Willard  of  the  Old  South 
Church,  was  born  May  i,  1681,  and  died  Dec.  6,  1756.     He  was 

24S 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Boston  July  12.     1745. 
The  Honble  Governor  Laws. 
Superscribed :    On   His   Majestys   especial    Service  To   the 

Honble  Jonathan  Laws  Esqr  Governor  of  the  Colony 

of  Connecticut  In  Milford 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY   TO    WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL 1 

Boston,  July  16,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  have  your  Packet  by  Sanders,  and  as  I  am  determined 
to  come  in  the  Hector  to  Louisbourg,  as  soon  as  I  can  pos- 
sibly settle  the  Business  of  the  Province  &  make  sure  pro- 
vision for  the  supply  of  the  Garrison  &c,  wch  I  hope  will 
be  by  to  morrow  (Thursday)  come  se'nnight,  I  shall  omit  say- 
ing any  thing,  'till  I  see  you  ;  except  that  I  think  it  uncom- 
mon that  the  Officers  should  desire  to  make  either  an  Express 
or  Agent  of  their  General :  surely  nothing  could  be  more 
improper  or  unsafe  than  for  you  to  quit  the  Army  at  this 
Critical  time,  and  I  am  sure  it  would  much  surprize  his 
Majesty.  As  to  the  other  Gentleman  or  Gentlemen  proper 
to  be  spar'd  upon  such  an  Occasion,  as  my  Honour  is  wound 
up  wth  that  of  the  army  ;  and  I  have  their  Interest  as  much 
at  heart  as  they  can  possibly  have,  and  am  the  best  Judge 
I  believe  of  what  will  be  most  for  their  Interest  at  this  June- 
graduated  from  Harvard  College  in  1698  and  served  as  Secretary 
of  Massachusetts  from  June,  1717,  until  the  time  of  his  death. 
His  experience  in  office  and  knowledge  of  the  affairs  of  the  colony 
were  of  great  assistance  to  Shirley,  and  during  the  latter's  absence 
in  Europe  the  importance  of  the  Secretary  increased  still  more. 
See  Hill,  "History  of  the  Old  South  Church." 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts, 
61  B,  p.  143.  On  June  29  Pepperrell  had  urged  Shirley  to  come  to 
Louisbourg  and  had  forwarded  a  message  from  the  Council  of  War 
to  the  same  effect  (6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  303),  but  while 
Shirley  and  Warren  wrote  Townsend  July  8  (P.  R.  O.,  Adm.  Sec. 
Insular  Letters,  480),  to  protect  the  St.  Lawrence  from  the  arma- 
ment preparing  at  Brest,  the  Massachusetts  governor  considered 
it  expedient  to  leave  at  once. 

249 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ture,  as  well  as  the  most  proper  Person  to  determine  who 
shall  go  to  England ;  since  sending  any  person  from  the 
Camp  has  been  deferr'd  so  long,  It  will  be  best  to  stay  'till 
I  arrive  at  Louisburg. 

I  am  with  much  respect  and  sincerity 
Sir, 

Your  most  Assur'd  Friend 
and  Servant. 

W.  Shirley. 
I  am  uneasy  'till  Tyng  and  Fletcher  return  for  the  pro- 
tection of  our  Coast  and  have  wrote  to  the  Commodore 
accordingly. 
Honble  Lieutent  Genl  Pepperill. 

WILLIAM    PEPPERRELL    TO  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

[Extract  ^] 

May  it  please  your  Excellency,  .  .  . 

1  am  very  sorry  you  should  meet  with  any  thing  to  damp 
your  joy  relating  to  any  dispute  between  Comodore  War- 
ren &  myselfe,  &  considering  that  we  are  both  quick  in  our 
tempers,  I  do  think  the  land  &  sea  have  agreed  in  this  ex- 
pedition as  well  as  ever  they  did  on  the  like  occasion,  &  if  it 
had  not  been  for  some  who  have  had  your  favours  I  dont 
think  there  would  have  been  any,  and  I  was  well  assurd 
that  before  we  got  possession  of  this  place  and  since  that  it 
was  of  absolute  necessity  to  keep  from  disputes  &  differences 
(or  otherwise  the  grand  design  might  have  sufferd)  &  I  have 
strove  to  my  uttermost  to  keep  things  easey.  It  is  true 
Mr  Warren  did  tell  me  he  was  the  chief  officer  here.  I  told 
him,  Not  on  shoar.  I  look  upon  it  that  these  disputes  are 
all  over,  as  we  both  aim  at  the  good  &  security  of  this  place. ^ 

^  This  letter  is  from  a  rough  draught  in  Pepperrell's  handwrit- 
ing.    It  is  printed  in  full,  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  lO,  329. 

2  Pepperrell's  letter  to  Warren  of  July  18  (6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc. 
Coll.  10,  333)  is  extremely  conciliatory  in  wording,  and  seems 
to  have  prevented  any  outbreak.  The  rivalry  between  Colonial 
and  Englishman  was  never  wholly  obliterated. 

250 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

As  to  the  direction  from  Mr  Duchambon  being  invertd,  the 
Commodore  being  now  first  namd  in  the  instrument,  the 
scheme  was  carryd  on  by  Mr  MacDonnal  who  you  gave  a 
commission  to  be  CoUo,  Mr  Warren  sending  him  in  wth  a 
flagg  of  truce  wth  a  letter  from  the  French  commandr  of  the 
Vigilant,  after  wch  Mr  Duchambon  put  the  Commodore  first. 
I  have  heard  that  Mr  MacDonnal  told  here  before  he  went 
wth  Capt  Rowse  for  England  what  great  things  he  had  done 
on  shore.  I  am  well  assurd  he  never  was,  put  it  all  together, 
one  hour  in  any  of  the  trenches,  &  he  might  be  on  shore  be- 
fore we  came  in  the  citty  three  days  at  times  in  the  camp,  & 
then  to  be  sure  we  were  glad  to  get  rid  of  him,  for  the  most 
he  did  was  to  find  fault  that  our  encampment  was  not 
regulr,  or  that  the  soldrs  did  not  march  as  hansome  as  old 
regulr  troops,  their  toes  were  not  turnd  enough  out,  &c.  I 
thot  we  encampt  as  regular  as  the  hills  &  valeys  would 
admit  of.  .  .  . 

Yor  Excellency's  most  affectionate  &  most  obedt  humble 
servt.  W.    P. 

Louisbourg,  July  17th,  1745. 

I  long  to  return  to  New  England. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE 

[Extract^] 

Boston,  New  Engld  the  21  July,  1745. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Since  my  last  to  your  Grace  I  have  been  inform'd  by  the 
General  and  Commodore  "that  they  have  wrote  a  joynt  Let- 
ter "to  your  Grace  telling  you  that  the  Colonies  have  not 
"impower'd  the  General  to  put  'em  to  the  Expence  of 
"repairing  and  maintaining  the  Garrison  of  Louisbourg, 
"and  they  should  therefore  draw  on  the  Treasury  at  home 
"for  such  sums  as  should  be  absolutely  necessary  for  repairing 
"the  Breaches  they  had  made,  and  putting  the  Garrison  in 

1  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  215. 
251 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

"a  good  posture  of  defence  till  his  Majesty's  pleasure  shall 
"be  known."  Wherefore  I  thought  it  proper  to  inform 
your  Grace,  that  tho  the  Colonies  have  not  impower'd  the 
General  to  put  them  to  the  expence  of  repairing  and  main- 
taining the  Garrison,  yet  I  may  assure  your  Grace  that  the 
Assembly  of  this  Province  (as  I  have  recofhended  to  'em  to 
do)  will  go  on  to  furnish  the  iifiediate  necessary  Supplies, 
for  repairing  the  Breaches  of  the  Fortifications  at  Louisbourg 
and  put  'em  in  a  posture  of  defence,  and  for  maintaining  the 
Garrison  'till  his  Majesty's  pleasure  shall  be  known  concern- 
ing it,  in  the  same  manner  that  they  have  supply'd  the  Ex- 
pedition before  the  Surrender  of  the  place  ;  which  will  be  the 
cheapest  method  of  doing  it,  for  his  Majesty ;  or  if  I  should 
find  it  necessary  to  draw  bills  upon  the  Treasury  for  any 
part  of  the  Expence,  I  will  take  care  to  do  it;  and  doubt 
not  but  as  the  last  bills,  which  I  drew  for  the  Cloathing  and 
provisions  sent  to  the  New  England  Auxiliaries  at  Annapolis 
Royal  met  with  immediate  payment,  I  shall  be  able  to  find 
purchasers  of  the  bills  at  twelve  pr  ct  at  least  more  in  favour 
of  the  Crown  than  what  the  Merchants  settled  the  Exchange 
at  upon  the  Annapolis  bills ;  and  shall  endeavour  to  save 
all  Comissions  upon  the  buying  of  materials  and  provisions 
&ca  besides ;  And  that  the  repairs  may  be  better  forwarded 
I  have  caus'd  a  Company  of  Artificers  and  Workmen  to  be 
inlisted. 

I  doubt  not  but  Mr  Engineer  Bastide  has  sent  home  a  list 
of  the  Artillery  and  Warlike  Stores  now  in  the  Town  and 
Batteries  of  Louisbourg,  and  that  a  full  proportion  of  'em 
will  be  soon  transmitted  by  the  Board  of  Ordnance  in  case 
his  Majesty  shall  think  fit  to  keep  the  Garrison  up.  In  the 
mean  time  I  have  taken  care  that  the  Quantity  of  powder  in 
their  Magazines  Is  made  up  784  barrels,  and  that  as  great  a 
quantity  of  shot  and  Shells  shall  be  sent  from  hence  as  I  can 
procure  for  the  present  defence  of  the  place ;  but  I  can't 
send  any  more  powder  unless  fresh  supplies  should  be  im- 
ported soon  In  the  London  Vessells  :  And  I  must  beg  leave 
to  repeat  it  to  your  Grace  that  the  small  Arms,  which  the 
New  England  Soldiers  have  there,  are  so  bad  that  it  will  be 

252 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

necessary,  if  his  Majesty  should  think  fit  that  any  of  'em  be 
Regimented,  and  continue  in  the  Garrison,  to  send  good 
Arms  for  'em. 

*  Hf  *  Hf  *  *  Hi 

I  am  with  the  most  Dutiful!  Regards 
My  Lord  Duke 
Your  Grace's  most  obedt 
and  most  Devoted  servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle 


Endorsed: 


Boston.  July  21,  1745 
Govr  Shirley 


^  Septr  16  . 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  JABEZ  BRADBURY  ^ 

Boston,  July  22d,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  have  reced  your  Letter  of  the  i6th  Instant  July  giving 
me  an  account  of  the  assault  committed  by  the  Indians  upon 
your  Fort  and  other  places  near  you,  Mr  Miliken  tells  me  that 
you  are  positive  that  you  Saw  some  of  the  Penobscutt  In- 
dians among  the  Assailants  &  particularly  that  you  saw  one 
of  those  that  had  been  in  under  a  pretence  of  Friendship  to 
Inform  you  of  these  Designs.  By  your  Letter  you  seem  to 
apprehend  that  the  Penobscutt  Indians  are  generally  in  these 
acts  of  Hostility.^  However  I  think  it  will  be  best  that  if 
any  of  the  said  Penobscutt  Tribe  shall  appear  near  the  Fort 
that  you  hoist  a  Flag  of  Truce  to  call  them  in  to  an  Inter- 
view with  you  and  if  you  can  obtain  any  Speech  with  them 

'  Cont.  Copy,  Conn.  Hist.  Soc,  Law  Papers,  i,  311,  Printed: 
Kimball,  Corres.  Col.  Gov.  of  R.  L   i,  376;    Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll. 

II,  349- 

*  See  Shirley  to  Pepperrell,  July  29,  for  a  further  account  of  these 
hostilities  (post,  p.  256),  and  Shirley's  letter  to  the  Indians  (ante,  p. 
247). 

253 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

I  would  have  you  read  my  Letter  to  'em  which  I  sent  by  Mr 
Miliken  and  also  tell  them  that  I  am  Informed  of  this  Viola- 
tion of  Treaty  and  that  if  the  body  of  the  Penobscutts  are 
engaged  with  our  Enemies  I  shall  immediately  Declare  War 
and  pursue  them  with  all  the  Resentment  which  so  horrid 
an  act  of  Treachery  &  Wickedness  Deserves,  but  if  they  pro- 
fess that  the  Body  of  the  Tribe  are  against  these  proceedings 
and  are  Disposed  to  peace  I  expect  and  insist  upon  this  proof 
of  their  Sincerity  that  they  deliver  up  those  of  their  people 
as  have  been  in  arms  against  us  and  have  Joyned  with  the 
party  of  Indians  who  have  assaulted  us  and  that  you  will 
give  them  the  space  of  Seven  Days  only  for  their  either  de- 
livering up  these  murtherers  or  giving  five  Hostages  of  some 
of  their  principal  men  to  Secure  the  Delivery  of  the  Said 
Indians  in  the  Space  of  Seven  Days  more 

I  am  Sir  your  Friend  &  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 

P.S.  Give  me  a  full  account  of  these  affairs  with  all 
possible  dispach 

To  Capt  Jabez  Bradbury 

Copy  examd  J  Willard  Secry. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

Boston,  N.  Engld  July  27,  1745. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Though  I  am  under  the  greatest  Obligations  to  your  Grace 
for  the  large  share  of  your  Favour  I  have  already  receiv'd,  of 
which  I  shall  ever  retain  a  most  grateful  Memory,  yet  the 
heavy  Duty  I  have  gone  through  in  the  Course  of  my  Gov- 
ernment having  very  sensibly  decay'd  my  Health,  and  my 
Income  having  been  very  little  more  than  what  has  suffic'd 
to  support  the  ordinary  Expences  of  my  Family  with  a  De- 
cency suitable  to  my  Station,  so  that  I  have  before  me  the 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  0.  5,  900,  p.  217. 
254 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

uncomfortable  prospect  of  being  likely  to  leave  some  Debts 
undischarg'd  and  a  large  Family  unprovided  for,  I  am  ob- 
lig'd  to  resort  again  to  your  Grace's  Goodness,  and  to  beg  of 
your  Grace  to  represent  my  Services  in  such  a  Light  to  his 
Majesty  as  may  obtain  a  further  Degree  of  his  Royal  Favour 
to  me. 

And  I  am  the  more  encourag'd  to  ask  this  of  your  Grace, 
as  his  Majesty  has  been  already  graciously  pleas'd  to  signify 
his  Royal  Approbation  of  my  Services  for  the  preservation  of 
his  province  of  Nova  Scotia  from  falling  into  the  Enemy's 
Hands  the  last  Year,  and  I  have  been  through  the  Blessing  of 
the  Divine  Providence  upon  his  Majesty's  Arms  chiefly 
Instrumental  in  procuring  a  valuable  Acquisition  to  be  made 
to  his  British  Dominions  this  year,  by  setting  on  foot  and 
conducting  from  hence  the  late  Expedition  against  the  French 
Settlements  at  Cape  Breton ;  Both  which  Services  being 
likewise  Beneficial  ones  to  the  Publick,  I  am  in  hopes  I  may 
be  thought  less  Burthensome  to  it  for  any  Share  of  his 
Majesty's  Favour,  which  in  his  Royal  Goodness  he  shall 
vouchsafe  to  support  me  with. 

Your  Grace,  who  have  long  sustain'd  so  great  a  Share  of 
the  Load  of  the  most  Arduous  Affairs  of  the  Kingdom,  may 
very  possibly  be  at  first  surpriz'd  to  hear  me  mention  the 
Business  of  a  small  Government  as  Burthensome  and  afi"ect- 
ing  my  Health  ;  But  if  I  could  duely  represent  to  your  Grace 
the  Fatigue,  which  (after  having  procur'd  the  Essential 
points  for  his  Majesty's  service  ever  since  the  present  War, 
to  be  carry'd  through  a  numerous  Assembly  not  us'd  to  such 
Engagements  as  they  have  been  led  into  lately)  it  has  been 
necessary  for  me  to  undergo  in  inspecting  the  Execution  of 
every  part  of  the  Schemes,  which  have  been  concerted,  for 
want  of  proper  Officers  to  execute  the  several  Orders  of 
Government  under  me,  together  with  the  various  Corre- 
spondences I  have  been  oblig'd  to  maintain  with  the  neigh- 
bouring Governors,  the  Camp  and  Fleet  before  Loulsbourg, 
and  Garrison  at  Annapolis  Royal,  for  carrying  on  the  Ex- 
pedition and  relieving  Annapolis,  the  great  Variety  of  new 
Incidents  daily  arising,  and  all  Difficulties  centring  in  my- 

255 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

self ;  And  this  over  and  above  the  Care  and  Protection  of 
our  own  Frontiers  amidst  continual  Alarms,  and  the  ordinary- 
Business  of  the  Government,  besides  transmitting  to  the 
several  great  Offices  at  home  Accounts  of  my  proceedings 
without  so  much  as  a  private  Secretary  to  assist  me,  the 
Want  of  my  usual  Exercise,  and  the  Anxiety  for  all  Events 
constantly  preying  upon  my  mind,  your  Grace  would  easily 
conceive  that  such  Duty  might  make  a  deep  Impression  upon 
firmer  Constitutions  than  mine ;  And  nothing  but  Success 
and  the  Satisfaction  arising  from  a  Consciousness  of  having 
us'd  my  best  Endeavours  to  discharge  my  Duty  to  his  Ma- 
jesty could  have  carry'd  me  through  it ;  And  that,  I  hope, 
by  the  Divine  Assistance  will  carry  me  through  what  other 
Service  may  remain  for  me  to  do. 

That  your  Grace  may  long  continue  in  the  full  possession 
of  your  own  Health  an  Ornament  and  Support  of  the  Ad- 
ministration of  his  Majesty's  Government  for  the  Welfare 
of  your  Country  is  the  ardent  wish  of  him,  who  is  bound  by 
the  strongest  Ties  of  Gratitude  and  Duty  to  be, 

My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Oblig'd  and 

most  Devoted  Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 


Endorsed 


]^  Septr  i6. 


Boston.  July  27.  1745. 
Govr  Shirley 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   WILLIAM   PEPPERRELL 

[Extracts^] 

Boston,  July  29,  1745. 
Sir, 

Yesterday  I  receiv'd  your  dispatches  by  the  Rhode  Island 
ship   Fame,   Captn  Thompson,   commander,   in   answer  to 

^  Printed  in  full :  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  338. 
256 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

which  I  need  not  be  particular  as  I  shall  without  fail  imbark 
for  Louisbourg  on  board  the  Hector,  either  before  or  by 
Saturday  next,  and  upon  my  arrival  there  may  settle  what 
is  wanting  to  be  done  upon  the  spot.^  In  the  mean  time  I 
have  to  inform  you  that  the  Assembly  are  at  present  deter- 
min'd  to  supply  his  Majesty's  service  at  Louisbourg  in  the 
same  manner  they  did  before  the  surrender  of  it,  and  that  I 
have  and  will  take  all  possible  care  of  those  two  necessary 
articles,  provisions  and  cloaths,  as  I  hope  you  will  secure 
wood  in  sufficient  quantities,  which  is  almost  as  necessary  at 
Louisbourg  in  the  winter.  Materials  and  rum  I  will  take  par- 
ticular care  of,  and  what  I  can  of  pay  for  workmen,  and  also 
of  recruits  to  supply  the  place  of  those  who  are  lost  or  have 
been  dismissed.  But  as  both  yourself  and  the  Commodore 
say  that  near  4000  men  are  wanting  to  defend  the  town  and 
batteries,  and  it  is  Improbable  that  any  troops  can  be  sent 
from  England  before  next  spring  it  will  be  necessary  for  you 
to  stop  your  hand  as  to  dismissing  more  men,  except  some  of 
those  who  belong  to  the  most  expos'd  eastern  parts,  For  I 
have  the  disagreable  news  to  inform  you  of  that  the  Indians 
have  at  last  broke  out  upon  those  settlements  join'd  by  some 
Penobscots,  and  have  killed  one  man  belonging  to  Broad 
Bay  and  another  of  George's  Fort,  both  of  'em  as  they  were  at 
some  distance  from  our  settlements  and  alone,  and  have  burnt 
two  or  three  empty  houses  and  destroy'd  upwards  of  70  head 
of  cattle,  all  belonging  to  George's,  and  attack'd  the  fort  and 
Brigadier  Waldo's  blockhouse  there  with  a  body  of  about 
70  men,  but  without  any  hurt  or  damage  to  either  or  any 
man  in  'em  and  with  some  loss  to  themselves.  We  impute 
this  rupture  to  a  false  report  spread  by  the  French  among  the 
Indians  that  we  were  defeated  and  cut  off  at  Louisbourg,  to 
prevent  the  ill  effects  of  which  I  had,  before  we  had  an  account 
of  the  Indians  breaking  out,  sent  an  express  to  inform  the  Pen- 
obscott  and  Norridgewalk  tribes  there  of  our  success  at  Cape 

^  In  his  letter  of  July  21  to  Newcastle  Shirley  had  stated  that 
the  colonies  would  not  pay  for  the  repairing  and  maintaining  of 
the  fortress  of  Louisbourg   (C.   O.   5,   900,  p.   215).     Temporary 
supplies  are  all  that  Shirley  has  in  mind  in  this  letter. 
VOL.1  —  s  257 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Breton,  and  that  all  the  French  there  were  our  prisoners,  that 
with  proper  promises  to  encourage  'em  in  their  fidelity,  and 
threats  to  deterr  'em  from  joining  the  French  Indians.^  But 
my  express  arriv'd  at  George's  Fort  one  day  too  late.  ...  In 
the  meanwhile  I  instantly  order'd  Sanders  ^  wth  30  men  on 
board  him  to  repair  to  George's  Fort,  and  go  up  all  the  rivers 
as  the  service  should  require,  and  have  sent  orders  to  demand 
of  the  Penobscott  Indians  to  deliver  up  to  us  within  seven 
days  such  of  their  tribe  as  had  join'd  the  enemy,  or  to  give 
five  hostages  to  the  acceptance  of  Captn  Bradbury,  to  de- 
liver 'em  up  in  seven  days  more,  which,  if  not  comply'd  with  I 
shall  declare  warr  against  'em,  and  a  bounty  will  be  forthwith 
given  for  their  scalps  as  against  the  St  John's  and  Cape  Sable 
Indians,  which  is  already  reviv'd,  and  the  warr  shall  be  push'd 
on  against  'em  in  their  own  quarters  with  the  utmost  vigour, 
never  to  be  ended  whilst  I  am  Governour  'till  they  are  either 
destroy'd  or  reduc'd  to  such  terms  of  obedience  as  to  put  our 
settlements  upon  an  absolutely  secure  foot  against  future 
ruptures  with  the  French.  ...  I  must  likewise  mention  that 
the  Indians  have  kill'd  two  men  at  different  places,  straggling 
after  their  cattle  upon  the  western  frontier  without  the 
Massachusetts  line,  but  have  not  appear'd  in  parties  or 
made  any  other  attempts  there,  and  I  have  thereupon  order'd 
two  snow-shoe  companies  to  scout  after  'em  into  the  woods, 
and  reinforcements  are  likewise  sent  down  into  those  parts, 
and  more  raising  for  'em. 

I  have  given  you  the  above  account  of  the  motions  of  the 
Indians,  which  I  believe  will  certainly  subside  when  they  are 
undeceiv'd  as  to  the  fate  of  Cape  Breton  and  the  success  of  our 
expedition,  that  you  may  know  the  very  worst  of  the  state  of 
our  frontiers,  and  not  have  false  alarms  spread  among 
you,  when  the  people  who  are  in  the  midst  of  the  enemy  speak 

^  See  Shirley  to  the  Indians,  July  12,  ante,  p.  247. 

^  Captain  Thomas  Sanders  was  born  in  Gloucester  in  1704  and 
was  for  many  years  in  the  Massachusetts  service  as  commander 
of  a  provincial  vessel.  He  took  an  important  part  in  the  Louis- 
bourg  expedition  convoying  six  vessels  of  troops  to  Cape  Breton 
in  March,  1744-5.     He  died  Oct.  24,  1774. 

258 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  their  efforts  with  contempt,  as  Captn  Bradbury  and 
Nichols  at  Mr  Waldo's  blockhouse,  and  Captn  Henderson, 
who  is  well  upon  his  guard  and  quite  easy. 

In  the  meanwhile  the  two  Houses  in  their  congratulatory 
address  to  me,  as  you  will  see,  desire  I  would  dismiss  so 
many  of  the  soldiers  belonging  to  the  eastern  frontiers  as 
shall  be  consistent  with  the  safety  of  Louisbourg  ^  and 
are  desirous  to  come  away  to  their  families,  esteeming  the 
western  parts  to  be  quite  safe;  and  I  think  the  eastern 
soldiers  should  be  dismissed  very  sparingly.  ...  I  must 
now  give  you  an  hint  that  the  two  Houses  are  very  uneasy 
least  Mr  Warren  should  have  assum'd  a  superior  command 
at  land  over  the  troops,  and  have  conceiv'd  a  jealousy  that  the 
officers  have  not  been  well  us'd,  some  of  'em,  and  that  accounts 
have  not  been  properly  transmitted  home  so  as  to  do  justice 
to  the  behaviour  of  our  troops,  which  indeed  makes  'em  ex- 
tremely urgent  with  me  to  go  down  to  Louisbourg,  and  I  hope 
care  will  be  taken  that  upon  my  entrance  into  the  harbour 
I  am  properly  saluted  by  the  batteries,  I  mean  the  Idand 
Battery  particularly,  as  I  am  by  the  gunns  of  Castle  William  : 
otherwise  it  will  occasion  uneasiness,  which  it  is  certainly  in 
your  power  to  prevent,  as  the  guard  of  the  Island  Battery, 
I  understand,  consists  of  our  own  troops,  whom  you  may 
give  proper  orders  to,  least  there  should   be  any  mistake.^ 

^  Shirley  did  not  believe  many  could  be  spared  until  there  were 
new  troops  to  take  their  places.  As  late  as  Aug.  23  he  declared  to 
the  troops  at  Louisbourg  that  they  must  serve  a  little  longer  and 
on  Sept.  17  (P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  900, 225)  he  declared  that  two  thousand 
must  remain  during  the  winter  to  protect  the  fortress. 

^  The  jealousy  felt  by  the  provincial  soldier  for  the  British 
regular  is  as  noticeable  here  as  eleven  years  later  in  the  trouble 
between  Loudoun,  Winslow,  and  Shirley.  The  Insistence  of  the 
latter  that  he  shall  receive  his  due  share  of  the  honors  is  conspicu- 
ous In  this  letter,  but  he  is  careful  that  there  shall  be  no  offense 
to  the  regular.  Shirley's  care  to  avoid  offense  is  seen  in  his  reply 
to  the  address  of  the  officers  on  the  fall  of  Louisbourg  (Mass.  Hist. 
Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61  C,  p.  i).     Here  he  states: 

"The  Success  which  Heaven  has  granted  to  His  Majesty's  arms 
in  the  Reduction  of  this  place  thro'  your  Services  in  conjunction 
with   those   of  his    ships   demands   our   most  GratefuU   acknow- 

259 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

For  it  is  certainly  of  the  utmost  consequence  to  preserve 
a  perfect  harmony  between  the  land  and  sea  at  so  dangerous 
a  crisis,  which  I  dare  say  Mr  Warren  is  disposed  to  do,  and  will 
do  if  he  considers  rightly,  and  small  matters  conducted  with 
prudence  will  serve  to  do  it;  and  unless  the  Commodore 
is  so  imprudent  as  to  assume  what  does  most  evidently  not 
belong  to  him,  and  it  is  inconsistent  with  the  King's  commis- 
sion to  myself  and  the  honour  and  right  of  the  province  that 
I  should  give  up,  (which  I  have  a  better  opinion  of  him  than 
to  think  he  will)  every  thing  will  go  smooth  between  us,  and 
more  so  because  I  have  a  real  esteem  and  friendship  for  him. 
I  am  very  much  concern'd  to  hear  that  the  men  are  grown 
uneasy  about  the  plunder,  and  impatient  to  return  home ; 
surely  they  won't  disgrace  their  past  behaviour  by  unreason- 
able discontents  and  murmurs  now,  nor  think  that  the  expe- 
dition is  over  'till  his  Majesty  has  the  place  in  his  own  hands. 
It  is  evident  that  it  would  shift  for  itself  if  the  troops  should 
quit  it,  and  that  securing  it  for  his  Majesty  till  the  possession 
is  deliver'd  to  his  orders  must  be  part  of  the  expedition. 
I  hope  this  will  reach  you  before  my  arrival,  and  that  I  shall 
have  an  happy  sight  of  you  some  time  next  week,  and  am 
with  much  truth  and  esteem.  Sir, 

Your  faithfuU  friend  and  servant. 

W.  Shirley. 
Lieutent  Genl.  Pepperrell. 


ledgements  for  so  Signal  a  favour  of  the  divine  Providence.  The 
honour  which  you  have  done  my  Commission  and  to  New  England 
by  your  share  in  this  Conquest,  claim  mine  and  your  Country's 
Thanks ;  And  I  doubt  not  but  that  the  high  Honour  which  his 
Majesty  has  done  you  by  Signifying  to  you  thro'  Sir  William 
Pepperell  His  Royal  Approbation  of  your  Services  will  farther 
animate  you  to  exert  your  best  Endeavours  for  Securing  this 
valuable  Acquisition  to  his  Dominions."  By  words  of  this  char- 
acter Shirley  retained  the  regard  of  all  who  had  shared  in  the  work 
at  Louisbourg  and  when  the  need  came  in  later  years  to  call  again 
upon  his  province  for  exertions  against  the  French,  he  found  little 
difficulty  in  obtaining  good  subordinate  officers  to  serve  under  him 
and  an  earnest  body  of  men  in  the  ranks.  See  also  his  plea  for 
honorable  dealing  with  the  rank  and  file,  post,pp.  267-268. 

260 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

JABEZ  BRADBURY  TO  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  i 
i  Georges,  July  29th,  1745. 

May  it  Please  Your  ExceIlency, 

The  third  day  of  our  being  Attackt  by  the  Indians,  and 
before  I  reed  your  Excys  Orders  for  So  doing  being  desire- 
ous  of  Knowing  who  of  the  Penobscotts  were  amongst  our 
Enemys,  I  put  up  a  Flagg  of  Truce,  one  of  the  Indians  came 
in,  Capt  Bane  and  I  went  out  to  the  others  who  were  thirty 
five  in  Number  many  more  being  up  the  River,  at  the  Same 
time,  burning  Houses  and  Killing  Cattle  whom  we  Saw 
not.  Amongst  those  we  Saw  were  nine  Penobscotts,  the 
Chief  of  whom  were  Sebohooset,  one  called  Rich  Outrea  and 
Paternion,  men  well  known  here.  I  Read  your  Excellencys 
Letter  to  them  thrice  that  they  might  fully  understand  it. 
They  sayd  it  came  too  late  and  added  that  we  had  broak 
the  peace  by  refusing  them  Powder  at  the  Truck  Houses,  and 
the  taking  a  St  Johns  Indian  last  fall.  The  Man  mentioned 
in  my  Last  Letter  they  Killed  and  Scalp't.  We  brought  him 
in  and  buried  him,  and  I  hear  that  a  Dutchman  at  Broad 
Bay  was  killed  and  Scalp't  by  the  Indians  about  the  Same 
time  they  were  here. 

Its  now  more  than  ten  days  Since  we  Saw  them,  where 
they  are  I  know  not,  but  Suppose  they  are  preparing  for 
more  mischief,  and  Expect  Soon  to  See  them  here.  I  hope 
your  Excy.  will  Send  Seven  men  to  fill  up  the  Company,  and 
also  Increase  the  Number  if  it  may  be  thought  best. 

I  am  your  Excellencys  most  obedt 
humble  Servt. 

Jabez  Bradbury. 
His  Excellency  Governour  Shirley 

Copy  examined.    J  Willard  Secry. 


^  Cont.  Copy,  Law  Papers  i,  316.     Printed:  Conn.  Hist.  See. 
Colls.  II,  353. 

2(Sl 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL  TO  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

[Extracts  ^ 

LouisBouRG,  Augt  6th,  1745. 

May  it  please  your  Excellency, 

Since  I  last  had  the  honour  of  writing  you  I  have  not 
receiv'd  the  favour  of  any  of  your  commands,  and  altho' 
am  daily  expecting  (as  well  as  constantly  wishing  for)  your 
Excellency's  safe  arrival  here,  I  cannot  omitt  giving  you 
or  the  government  the  necessary  notice  of  every  occurrence. 
One  of  the  inhabitants  of  this  place,  vizt,  John  Batiste  De 
Young,  who  is  desirous  of  recommending  himself  to  my  fav- 
our, tells  me  that  in  the  departure  of  a  schooner  lately 
brought  into  this  port  (by  Capt  Fletcher)  from  Canada,  he 
has  good  assurance  from  one  Charles,  a  marriner  belonging  to 
said  schooner,  that  about  the  6th  July  last  past  there  were  ten 
thousand  French  troops  raiz'd,  victualled,  and  ready  to  march 
from  Quebec  for  the  English  frontiers ;  he  also  informs  me 
that  the  number  of  men  at  Canada  fitt  to  bear  arms  are 
45,000,  of  which  number  are  only  150  regular  troops  in  the 
French  King's  pay,  50  of  whom  are  posted  at  Quebec,  and  100 
at  Montreal ;  that  there  are  2000  French  families  settled  on 
the  River  St  Lawrence  below  Quebec ;  that  there  is  no  fort 
or  battery  between  the  entrance  of  the  river  and  Quebec ;  he 
further  adds  that  he  was  last  year  at  Canada,  but  knows 
nothing  of  the  French  building  a  fort  on  the  Isle  of  Orleans. 
On  the  other  hand  I  am  inform'd  by  the  captain  of  the  same 
schooner  that  the  French  at  Canada  were  in  constant  alarm 
from  an  expectation  they  had  of  an  English  visit  this  sum- 
mer, and  from  many  other  hands  that  the  number  of  men  at 
Canada  is  25,000  only. 

Your  intelligences  from  Albany  will  probably  give  you 
the  best  satisfaction,  but  for  my  own  part  I  am  under  no 
apprehension  of  so  formidable  an  attack,  but  that  the  chief, 

^  Pepperrell  Papers,  Mass.  Hist.  Society,  Printed :  6  Mass. 
Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  ID,  347.  .  . 

262 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

if  not  only,  danger  of  the  frontiers  is  from  the  Canada  men 
who  lately  besieg'd  Annapolis,  and  which  I  fear,  without 
the  extraordinary  interposition  of  the  province,  will  soon 
ruin  the  whole  frontiers,  which  must  greatly  abate,  if 
not  overballance,  the  joys  of  our  late  victory. 


As  the  supportof  this  fortress  is  of  the  greatest  consequence 
to  all  the  British  Colonys  it  is  highly  reasonable  they  should 
all  contribute  thereto  in  some  regular  stipulated  proportion, 
which  I  hope  will  be  most  speedily  and  successfully  solicited, 
but  as  this  will  be  a  work  of  time  and  the  event  uncertain, 
the  burthen  must,  I  apprehend,  lye  a  little  longer  on  the 
Massachusetts,  and  as  large  supplys  of  all  sorts  of  stores 
should  be  furnish'd  and  secured  in  the  King's  magazines  here 
for  support  of  this  and  the  neighbouring  garrisons  not  only 
this  winter,  but  for  a  six  months'  siege,  which  may  reasonably 
be  expected  to  commence  with  the  spring,  it  will  require 
a  close  and  speedy  attention,  for  that  the  army  may,  and  prob- 
ably will  be  here  so  early  next  spring  as  to  prevent  recruits 
or  supplys  coming  in,  as  was  the  late  case  of  this  place.  I 
have  nothing  further  at  present  to  offer  for  the  publick 
service,  but  to  beg  of  your  Excellency,  as  I  have  with  the 
utmost  justice  represented  the  circumstances  of  the  army  and 
of  this  fortress,  that  due  consideration  may  be  had  thereon, 
and  that  such  resolutions  may  be  taken  as  may  be  for  his 
Majesty's  service  and  the  further  honour  of  my  dear  country, 
for  the  peace  and  welfare  of  which  and  every  happiness  to 
your  Excellency  is  the  most  hearty  wish  of. 

Your  Excellency's  most  obedt  humb.  servt. 

W.  P. 
His  Excellency  Govt  Shirley  &c.,  &c.,  &c. 


263 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH 

[Extract  ^] 

Louisbourg,  Sept  2d,  1745. 
Sir, 

His  Majesty's  service  upon  several  accounts  requiring 
my  Presence  here  a  few  weeks,  for  securing  our  new  acqui- 
sition, till  his  Majesty  shall  have  an  opportunity  of  tak- 
ing it  into  his  own  protection,  I  set  sail  in  his  Majestys 
ship  Hector,  from  Nantasket,  on  Saturday  night  pas  month, 
and  arrived  here  on  Fryday  Evening  pas  Fortnight,  where 
I  have  been  endeavoring,  in  the  best  manner  I  can,  to  set- 
tle the  State  of  the  land  Forces,  and  to  act  for  the  Interest 
of  the  common  cause  of  the  Colonies  concerned  in  the  Ex- 
pedition in  every  respect.  Upon  looking  into  the  State  of 
the  Massachusetts  and  New  Hampshire  Troops  I  find  it 
to  stand  thus  :  The  Massachusetts  Government  sent  into 
the  service  of  the  Expedition,  upon  the  first  Enlistment, 
including  the  Troops  in  their  pay  which  were  aggregated  to 
your  Regiment  the  train  of  Artillery  and  workmen,  thirty 
three  hundred  men,  of  which  twelve  hundred  and  thirty  eight 
are  return'd  home,  ninety  five  are  killed  and  fifty  seven 
died  natural  deaths,  so  that  of  those  soldiers  there  remain 
here  nineteen  hundred  and  twelve ;  since  which  Enlistment 
the  Massachusetts  Government  have  voted  a  thousand 
men  more  to  be  rais'd  for  the  service,  of  which  about  seven 
hundred  are  actually  raised  and  arrived  at  Louisbourg,  so 
that  there  are  in  the  whole  about  twenty  five  hundred  Mas- 
sachusetts Troops  now  upon  Duty  within  the  Garrison  and 
Batteries  here,  and  the  remaining  three  hundred  are  now 
raising  with  the  utm.ost  Dispatch,  to  compleat  the  last 
thousand,  and  relieve  some  more  of  the  Massachusetts 
Troops. 

Your  Excellency  sent  hither,  upon  your  first  Enlistment 
308  soldiers  of  which  169  —  including  the  Invalids  now  sent 

^  Belknap  Papers,  N.  H.  Hist.  Society,  i,  240.  Printed:  N.  H. 
Prov.  Papers,  5,  372. 

264 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

—  are  returned  home.  Six  have  dyed  natural  deaths,  and 
five  have  been  killed,  so  that  of  those  first  Enlisted  Troops 
139  are  now  remaining  here;  since  which  first  enlistment 
115  more  Troops  have  been  raised  and  sent  hither  from  your 
Government,  and  Two  hundred  and  fifty  four  Troops  are  now 
upon  Duty  within  the  Garrison  and  Batteries  here.  By 
this  account  your  Excellency  will  perceive  that  the  Quota 
of  your  Government  in  proportion  to  that  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Bay,  according  to  the  several  Levies  raised  by  each 
Government  for  the  service  of  the  Expedition  is  as  308 
to  forty  three  hundred ;  and  how  much  larger  a  proportion 
of  the  New  Hampshire  Troops  of  the  first  Enlistment  have 
been  dismissed  than  of  those  of  the  Massachusetts  Govern- 
ment upon  the  same  Enlistment,  and  how  much  larger  a 
part  of  the  Quota  of  the  Massachusetts  Troops  raised  and 
voted  to  be  raised  is  upon  Duty  here  than  of  the  Quota 
of  your  Government;  upon  which  I  doubt  not  but  your 
Excellency  will  observe  my  own  and  the  General's  disposi- 
tion to  do  full  Justice  to  the  New  Hampshire  troops  and  that 
your  Government  will  continue  to  act  in  concert  with  that 
of  the  Massachusetts  Bay,  with  the  same  vigour  that  you 
have  hitherto  done  for  the  common  cause. 


I  am,  with  great  regard.  Sir 

Your  Excellencys  most  obedient 
Humble  servant 
His  Excy.  Gov.  Wentworth.  W.  Shirley. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  1 

Louisbourg,  Septr  27,  1745. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Three  days  ago  I  was  honour'd  with  your  Graces  Letter 
to  me  dated  the  loth  of  August  by  the  Shirley  Galley  In- 

1  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  236. 
265 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

closing  a  Copy  of  another  from  your  Grace  to  Sr  Wm 
Pepperell.  I  have  the  highest  sense  of  the  great  Honour 
done  me  by  the  Lords  Justices  in  their  approbation  of  my 
conduct  and  share  in  the  late  Expedition  against  Cape 
Breton,  and  a  most  dutifull  one  of  His  Majesty's  Good- 
ness in  vouchsafing  to  signify  his  high  Satisfaction  in  it 
to  those,  who  were  Instrumental  therein ;  and  it  is  with 
the  utmost  pleasure  that  I  shall  in  Obedience  to  his  Com- 
mands acquaint  the  Council  and  Assembly  of  the  province 
under  my  Government  with  his  Intire  satisfaction  in  their 
Zeal  for  His  Service  in  the  late  Enterprize,  and  that  their 
Conduct  on  this  Occasion  will  always  Intitle  them  in  a  par- 
ticular manner  to  his  Royal  Favour  and  protection. 

The  marks  of  His  Majesty's  Favour,  with  which  he  has 
been  pleas'd  to  distinguish  Rear  Admiral  Warren's  and 
Sr  Wm  Pepperell's  Services  in  the  late  Expedition,  afford 
me  a  singular  pleasure,  and  together  with  His  Royal  Ap- 
probation of  my  own  for  the  preservation  of  his  province 
of  Nova  Scotia  from  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  Enemy, 
the  last  year,  Declar'd  in  his  Council  give  me  the  strongest 
hopes  of  His  Majesty's  most  gracious  acceptance  of  my 
late  Services  for  the  Reduction  of  the  Island  of  Cape  Breton 
to  the  Obedience  of  his  Crown,  and  of  an  equal  disposition 
in  him  to  extend  the  Marks  of  his  Royal  Favour  to  me  as  a 
proof  of  it. 

I  have  duly  attended  to  the  several  orders  which  your 
Grace  is  pleas'd  to  inform  me  the  Lords  Justices  have  thought 
proper  to  give  for  putting  Louisbourg  into  an  immediate 
condition  of  Defence,  and  particularly  that  their  Excellencies 
have  it  under  Consideration  whether  one  or  more  Regi- 
ments shall  be  Established  of  the  American  Troops  now 
under  the  Command  of  Sr  Wm  Pepperell ;  whereupon  I 
would  observe  to  your  Grace  that  those  Troops  were  rais'd 
upon  my  Proclamation  on  the  Terms  of  being  discharg'd 
at  the  End  of  the  Expedition  (without  making  which 
promise  to  them  it  would  have  been  Impracticable  to  have 
rais'd  them),  and  humbly  submit  it  to  your  Grace's  Con- 
sideration whether  the  Expedition  may  not  be  deem'd  to 

266 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

be  at  an  End  upon  the  Arrival  of  the  two  Regiments  from 
Gibraltar,  and  consequently  whether  such  of  the  American 
Troops  as  are  not  willing  to  remain  longer  in  the  Service 
can  consistently  with  the  publick  faith  be  held  in  it.  How 
practicable  it  may  have  been  represented  to  your  Grace  to 
raise  two  Regiments  of  Garrison  Soldiers  out  of  the  American 
Troops  now  here,  or  other  Inhabitants  of  New  England  upon 
the  usual  Terms  of  His  Majesty's  Service  I  don't  know ; 
but  I  am  perswaded  it  would  be  difficult  to  raise  even  one 
Regiment  of  looo  men  here  upon  those  Terms,  and  would 
humbly  propose  to  your  Grace,  as  what  I  am  affraid  His 
Majesty's  Service  will  require  upon  this  Occasion,  that  the 
Men  may  be  permitted  (if  not  to  be  rais'd  otherwise)  to 
Inlist  for  the  Term  of  Two  years,  and  some  other  Encour- 
agement, as  a  Lott  of  Land  at  the  End  of  the  Service  to  be 
held  upon  the  tenure  of  appearing  on  Duty  in  the  Garrison 
upon  every  Alarm  during  the  Term  of  Seven  years  afterwards, 
and  to  be  muster'd  there  once  in  a  Quarter  at  least  in  everyone 
of  those  years  besides,  or  some  other  Encouragement  for 
bringing  them  into  the  Service ;  without  which  I  doubt  no 
sure  dependence  can  be  had  upon  raising  two  or  even  one 
Regiment  in  New  England,  at  least  within  such  time  as 
his  Majesty's  Service  will  require.  However  if  it  should 
be  thought  that  the  raising  of  Troops  upon  such  different 
Establishments  in  the  same  Garrison,  as  that  of  the 
British  Troops  propos'd  to  be  sent  hither  and  such  Amer- 
ican Regiments  would  be,  might  have  a  Tendency  to 
raise  a  Spirit  of  discontent  in  the  soldiers  for  life,  and  be 
on  that  or  any  other  account  Inconsistent  with  the  Nature 
of  the  Service,  I  will  use  my  best  Endeavours  to  raise  one  or 
more  Regiments  out  of  the  American  Troops  upon  the  com- 
mon Terms  of  Inlistment,  and  most  readily  assist  Sr  Wm 
Pepperell  to  the  utmost  of  my  Power  in  raising  his  Regi- 
ment; but  I  mention  this  least  His  Majesty's  Service  should 
be  dis-appointed  with  an  Expectation  of  what  seems  to  me 
not  very  practicable.  At  all  events,  let  the  Success  of  the 
American  Levies  be  what  it  will,  I  will  endeavour  to  the 
utmost  of  my  Power  to  retain  in  the  Garrison  during  this 

267 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Winter  as  many  of  the  American  Troops  already  rais'd 
as  will  make  up  the  two  Regiments  from  Gibraltar  upwards 
of  2000  men,  which  your  Grace  will  perceive  by  the  inclos'd 
Opinion  of  the  Council  of  Warr  is  thought  a  sufficient  num- 
ber for  the  defence  of  the  place  'till  the  beginning  of  March, 
and  from  that  time  3000,  which  besides  the  Train  of  Ar- 
tillery is  by  the  Engineer's  opinions  esteem'd  a  sufficient 
Force  in  the  Spring  and  other  Seasons  'till  one  or  more 
American  Regiments,  according  as  his  Majesty  shall  de- 
termine, can  be  rais'd  upon  Terms  agreeable  to  his  Royall 
Pleasure :  and  as  on  the  one  hand  His  Majesty's  Service 
seems  absolutely  to  require  this  to  be  done  for  the  imme- 
diate Security  of  this  Acquisition  so  on  the  other  hand  it 
seems  equally  to  require  that  the  Terms  of  the  proclama- 
tion, upon  which  these  Troops  Inlisted  should  be  as  In- 
violably observed  as  may  be ;  otherwise  no  Faith  will  be 
given  to  any  future  Proclamations  in  the  Colonies  for  his 
Majesty's  Service  upon  the  like  Occasions. 

It  is  with  the  utmost  Gratitude  that  I  observe  your 
Grace's  kind  Expressions  of  your  Regard  for  me  in  your 
Letter,  where  you  are  pleas'd  to  say  that  if  two  American 
Regiments  are  rais'd  your  Grace  is  not  without  hopes  that 
in  Consideration  of  my  Services  His  Majesty  may  be  gra- 
ciously pleas'd  to  bestow  the  other  on  me.  I  hope  from 
my  Experience  of  your  Grace's  past  goodness  that  what- 
ever mark  of  his  Royal  Favour  his  Majesty  shall  be  gra- 
ciously pleas'd  to  honour  me  with,  it  will  be  such  as  may 
not  diminish  the  honour  and  Influence  which  I  have  hitherto 
maintain'd  in  my  own  Government  and  his  Majesty's 
other  Neighbouring  Colonies  by  degrading  my  Services 
below  those  of  Sr  Wm  Pepperell's,  which  I  am  perswaded 
are  not  in  the  Estimation  of  the  American  Troops  and 
Colonies,  which  have  had  an  opportunity  of  knowing  both 
upon  the  spot,  inferior  to  Sr  William's  or  any  other  Gentle- 
man's concern'd  in  the  Expedition.  And  since  your  Grace 
has  been  pleas'd  to  mention  His  Majesty's  bestowing  the 
Command  of  a  Regiment  upon  me,  I  would  take  the  Liberty 
to  beg  of  your  Grace  to  recommend  me  to  his  Majesty  for 

268 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  Command  of  General  Phillips's  Regiment,  if  that  Is  now 
vacant,  instead  of  one  of  those  design'd  for  this  Garrison. 

I  should  not  have  presum'd  upon  this  Occasion  to  have 
pointed  out  anything  in  particular  to  his  Majesty  for  my- 
self had  not  your  Grace's  mentioning  of  a  Regiment  en- 
couraged me  to  do  it,  but  have  entirely  rested  on  his  Royal 
Bounty  to  have  allotted  me  such  marks  of  His  Gracious 
Acceptance  of  my  Services,  as  he  should  have  vouchsafed 
to  have  honour'd  me  with,  without  mentioning  anything 
in  particular. 

Your  Grace  may  depend  upon  my  utmost  Attention  to 
his  Majesty's  Service  for  the  Securing  and  Maintaining  of 
this  valuable  acquisition  to  his  Crown,  and  for  that  purpose 
I  shall  continue  to  employ  my  best  Endeavours  in  Con- 
cert with  Mr  Warren  and  Sr  Wm  Pepperell ;  and  as  Oppor- 
tunity offers  shall  transmitt  to  your  Grace  particular  accounts 
of  what  shall  pass,  with  my  opinion  as  to  the  steps  neces- 
sary to  be  taken  by  His  Majesty,  for  the  Security  and  main- 
tenance of  this  Conquest,  pursuant  to  your  Grace's  direc- 
tions to  me  in  your  Letter. 

As  the  Lords  Justices  have  recommended  Mr  Warren  to 
be  Governour  of  this  place  I  shall  leave  It  with  the  greatest 
satisfaction  In  a  few  days,  he  being  a  Gentleman  of  whose 
Activity  Zeal  and  Capacity  for  the  Service  of  his  King  and 
Country  I  have  a  great  opinion  and  of  which  he  has  in  a 
particular  Manner  given  a  Proof  in  the  direction  of  His 
Majesty's  Ships  under  his  Command  concern'd  In  the  Ex- 
pedition, whereby  he  has  contributed  to  the  reduction  of 
this  place  as  much  as  it  was  possible  for  any  Gentleman 
to  do  in  his  Situation ;  He  Is  already  well  esteem'd  by  the 
Colonies  in  General  and  I  shall  do  every  thing  In  my  Power 
still  farther  to  cultivate  his  Interest  in  New  England  for 
His  Majesty's  Service,  and  to  maintain  the  most  perfect 
Union  and  harmony  with  him  for  promoting  the  good  of 
the  common  Cause  in  every  Respect,  as  I  have  done  ever  since 
the  beginning  of  the  Expedition ;  and  I  shall  endeavour  to 
the  utmost  of  my  Power  to  support  the  Interest  of  Sr  Wm 
Pepperell  (of  whose  great  Merit  and  Services  in  the  late  Ex- 

269 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

pedition  I  have  the  fullest  perswasion,  with  the  Assembly  of 
the  Massachusetts  Bay  and  throughout  the  province. 

The  Expressions  of  your  Grace's  kind  regard  for  me  in 
your  Letter  have  greatly  added  to  my  Obligations  to  your 
Grace  for  the  Patronage  and  protection,  with  which  you 
have  been  pleas'd  to  honour  me  hitherto,  and  encourage 
me  farther  to  request  of  Your  Grace  to  procure  of  His  Ma- 
jesty leave  for  me  to  come  to  England  for  a  Twelve  month 
for  the  reestablishment  of  my  Health  and  the  Settlement 
of  my  private  affairs,  as  soon  as  may  be  consistent  with  His 
Service  here ;  which  I  hope  may  be  sometime  next  Summer. 
The  very  close  Application,  which  His  Majesty's  Service 
has  indispensibly  requir'd  from  me  ever  since  I  have  been 
in  my  Government,  but  especially  for  these  last  Eighteen 
Months,  and  the  Fatigue  and  anxiety,  which  have  attended  my 
duty  during  that  time,  having  occasion'd  the  Intire  Loss  of 
my  Appetite  and  fix'd  a  violent  headache  upon  me,  to  which 
I  was  an  Intire  Stranger  before,  and  which  will  irretriev- 
ably destroy  my  health  unless  I  can  soon  have  a  Relaxa- 
tion from  publick  Business ;  and  I  am  in  hopes  that  during 
my  Residence  in  England  I  may  not  be  wholly  unusefull 
there  to  His  Majesty  by  having  an  Opportunity  of  more 
fully  laying  before  the  Ministry  some  points,  which  greatly 
concern  his  Service  here  and  the  welfare  of  his  Colonies, 
than  I  can  do  by  Letters  from  hence. 

I  am  with  the  most  gratefull  sense  of  my  Obligations  to 
your  Grace,  and  the  most  dutifuU  regard 
My  Lord  Duke 

Your  Grace's  most  Obedient 
and  most  devoted  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 

P.S.     Cloathing  for  1500  men  is,  as  I  am  inform'd,  just 
arriv'd  here  from  Boston,   and  the  Assembly  have  rais'd 
the  Massachusetts  Soldiers  wages. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle 
Eiidorsed  : 

Louisburgh  Sept.  27.   1745 

Govr  Shirley.  >^ 

B  Oct.  29.  270 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL^ 
J,  Louisbourg,  October,  2.  1745. 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  having  acquainted  both 
of  us  that  the  Lords  Justices  had  it  under  Consideration 
whether  one  or  more  Regiments  should  be  establish'd  of 
the  American  Troops  under  your  Command,^  whereby  their 
Excellencies  seem  to  think  a  sure  Dependence  may  be  had 
upon  our  raising  one  or  more  Regiments  out  of  those  Troops, 
I  desire  you  would  give  me  your  Sentiments  upon  this  point, 
and  let  me  know  what  Number  of  the  Troops  now  rais'd 
you  think  we  may  depend  upon  to  continue  in  his  Majesty's 
Service  here  as  Garrison  Soldiers  upon  the  common  Terms  of 
Enlistment ;  and  what  measures  you  think  may  be  the  most 
Adviseable  for  us  to  pursue  in  order  to  raise  one  or  more 
Regiments  in  New  England  for  the  Service  of  this  Garrison. 

I  think  it  is  necessary  for  me  to  transmit  our  Opinion  home 
to  his  Grace  concerning  this  matter,  that  his  Majesty  may 
know  what  may  be  depended  upon  in  it,  and  that  his  Service 
may  not  be  disappointed  by  his  Expectation  of  what  is  not 
practicable  here. 

Be  pleased  to  favour  me  with  your  Opinion  in  writing, 

and  you  will  oblige 

Sir 

'  Your  most  Assured 

Friend  and  Humble  Servt 

Sir  William  Pepperell.  W.  Shirley. 

^  Original  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Society,  Belknap  Manuscripts, 
61  B,  p.  171. 

^  A  draft  of  Newcastle's  letter  of  Sept.  ii,  to  Shirley  and  Pep- 
perrell  announcing  that  two  regiments  were  to  be  formed  from  the 
American  troops  and  that  Shirley  and  Pepperrell  were  to  be  their 
respective  colonels  is  in  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  45,  p.  209.  Shirley 
did  not  receive  his  official  promotion  however  until  Oct,  lO,  when 
a  letter  from  the  War  Office  announced  that  his  regiment  with 
others  would  form  the  garrison  for  Cape  Breton  (War  Office  Mss. 
in  P.  R.  O.,  4,  41,  p.  7).  Another  reason  for  asking  Pepperrell 
how  large  an  enlistment  could  be  relied  upon  was  that  at  the 
Council  held  Sept.  17,  a  spirit  of  discontent  appeared  quite  pro-, 
nounced  in  the  army.     See  Record  of  Council  in  C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  229. 

271 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM   PEPPERRELL.^ 

Louisbourg,  October  7,  1745. 
Sir, 

As  my  friend  Mr  Kilby  has  desired  me  to  use  my 
interest  with  you  that  he  may  be  agent  of  your  regiment, 
designed  to  be  established  out  of  the  American  troops  now 
under  your  command,  ^  I  would  beg  the  favour  of  you  that 
you  would  give  me  the  promise  of  it  for  him.  This  is  what 
I  have  much  at  heart  to  obtain  of  you,  and  if  I  have  any 
interest  with  you,  shall  not  be  without  hopes  of  succeed- 
ing in  my  request.  You  know  the  gentleman  whom  I 
recommend  very  well,  and  he  is  your  friend.  If  it  was 
necessary  for  me  to  give  him  a  character  to  you,  I  should 
say  that  he  has  deserved  extremely  well  of  the  Province,  and 
is  a  person  of  great  integrity  and  honour  and  a  good  friend. 
Your  answer  to  me  in  a  line  will  much  oblige.  Sir, 
Your  most  humble  servt. 

W.  Shirley.' 
Sir  William  Pepperrell,  Baronett. 

^Printed:  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  377. 

^See  Shirley  to  Pepperrell,  Oct.  2,  preceding. 

^Pepperrell's  reply  to  this  request  follows :  Sir,  Your  Excellency's 
favour  of  this  date  I  received,  and  should  have  preventd  your  giving 
yourselfe  the  trouble  of  writing,  if  my  indisposition  of  body  had  not 
preventd  my  waiting  on  you  and  shewing  you  a  letter  I  wrote  to  our 
friend  Mr  Kelby,  wherein  I  have  promisd  that  if  I  should  have  a  regi- 
ment I  will  use  my  endeavour  that  he  be  appointd  agent  to  it.  And 
nothing  will  give  me  more  pleasure  than  obliging  your  Excellency 
in  serving  any  friend  of  yours.  I  am  with  all  dutyfuU  regards, 
Your  Excellency's  most  obedt  humble  servt. 

W.  P. 

Louisbourg,  October  7th,  1745. 


373 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  1 

Louisbourg,  October  28,  1745. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

The  Council  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  Prov- 
ince under  my  Governmt  having  taken  Occasion  in  a  late 
Address  to  me  to  desire,  that  upon  my  Arrival  here  "I 
would  give  Orders  that  a  full  Account  of  the  Proceedings 
of  the  New  England  Forces  rais'd  under  my  Commission 
for  the  Reduction  of  Cape  Breton  during  the  late  Siege  of 
this  Place  to  the  time  of  it's  Surrender  should  be  transmitted 
in  the  most  eifectual  manner,  and  as  soon  as  possible  to  his 
Majesty,"  I  have  caused  the  inclosed  Account  of  their 
Proceedings  and  Services  from  their  first  landing  at  Canso 
to  the  time  of  the  Surrender  of  his  Place  to  be  taken  upon 
the  Spot  from  Persons  who  were  privy  to  every  Part  of  the 
Transactions,  and  to  be  laid  before  Sr.  Wm.  Pepperrell 
and  other  principal  Officers  of  the  Army  for  their  Perusal  and 
Attestation,  and  am  persuaded  from  my  Own  Observations 
upon  the  Spot  as  well  as  the  Accounts  of  these  Gentlemen, 
that  it  contains  a  just  Representation  of  the  Conduct  and 
Behaviour  of  the  Troops  in  the  Reduction  of  this  Place, 
and  now  take  the  Liberty  to  transmit  it  to  your  Grace, 
pursuant  to  the  Assemblys  Request  to  me. 

^  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  240.  An  Autograph  copy  of  this 
letter  sent  by  Shirley  to  Governor  Wentworth  of  New  Hampshire 
is  among  the  Massachusetts  Manuscripts  in  the  Library  of  Con- 
gress. Other  accounts  of  the  capture  of  Louisbourg  are  noted 
in  Winsor,  '*  Narrative  and  Critical  History  of  America,"  V,  410- 
413,  434-447.  See  also  the  pamphlet:  Shirley,  William,  A  letter 
to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  with  a  Journal  of  the  Siege  of  Louis- 
bourg etc.  London,  1746,  and  Pepperrell,  William,  A  letter  to 
Captain  Henry  Stafford  with  An  Accurate  Journal  and  Ac- 
count etc.  Exon.  1746.  See  also  the  Journal  published  for  the 
American  Antiquarian  Society,  1910,  from  an  original  manuscript 
account  of  the  Pepperrell  Expedition  in  its  Collections,  edited 
with  notes  and  bibliography  by  Charles  Henry  Lincoln. 
VOL.  I  —  X  273 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

The  Sum  of  this  Account  ^  Is,  That  the  New  England 
Troops  having  sail'd  from  Canso  the  29th  of  April,  till  which 
time  they  were  detain'd  there  by  the  unusual  Quantity 
of  Ice  in  Chappeau-rouge  Bay,  came  to  an  Anchor  the  next 
Morning  between  9  and  10  in  the  Bay,  at  the  Distance  of 
about  two  Miles  from  Flat  Point  Cove ;  where  being  dis- 
covered by  the  Enemy,  a  Party  of  about  150  Men  were 
detach'd  from  Louisbourg  under  the  Command  of  Capt 
Morepang  and  Mr.  Boulardrie  to  oppose  their  Landing. 

That  General  Pepperrell  having  made  a  Feint  to  land  a 
Party  in  Boats  at  the  Cove  in  order  to  draw  the  Enemy 
thither,  did  by  a  Signal  from  the  Vessels  cause  those  Boats 
suddenly  to  row  back  and  join  another  party  of  Boats  un- 
der his  Stern,  out  of  which  were  landed  at  two  Miles  d  stance 
from  the  Cove  about  100  of  our  Men,  before  the  Enemy  could 
come  round  to  oppose  'em,  who  notwithstanding  the  Enemy 
had  the  Advantage  of  being  cover'd  by  their  Woods,  attack'd 
'em  so  briskly  that  they  kill'd  6  of  'em  upon  the  Spot,  took 
as  many  Prisoners  (among  whom  was  Mr.  Boulardrie) 
wounded  several  more,  and  after  exchanging  some  Shot  put 
the  rest  to  flight  (some  of  whom  were  taken  Prisoners  the 
next  day)  with  the  Damage  sustained  on  our  Side  of  only 
two  Men's  being  slightly  wounded.  That  2000  of  the 
Troops  were  landed  the  same  day,  and  the  Remainder  be- 
ing near  2000  more  the  day  following.  That  on  the  next 
day  a  Detachment  of  400  of  our  men  march'd  round  to  the 
North  East  Harbour  behind  the  Range  of  Hills  there, 
where  they  burnt  all  the  Enemy's  Houses  and  Stores  in  that 
Neighbourhood,  at  the  Distance  of  about  a  Mile  from  the 
Grand  Battery,  whereby  such  a  Terror  was  struck  into  'em 
that  the  same  Night  they  deserted  that  Battery,  leaving 
the  Artillery  consisting  of  28  Cannon  of  42le  Shott  and  two 
of  i81e  and  the  Ordnance  Stores  belonging  to  it  (except 
their  Powder  which  they  threw  into  a  Well)  so  precipitately 
that  they  only  spik'd  up  their  Cannon  in  a  slight  manner 
without  knocking  off  any  of  the  Trunnions,  or  doing  other 

^  The  account  in  full  covers  about  4200  words  and  is  found  in 
C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  248,  following  this  letter. 

274 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Damage  to  'em,  and  but  very  little  to  the  Carnages.  That 
the  next  Morning  being  the  3d  of  May  a  party  of  about  15  or 
16  of  our  Men  discovered  that  the  Enemy  had  abandoned 
the  Grand  Battery,  and  drove  off  a  Party  of  'em  which 
attempted  to  reland  there  that  Morning  in  Boats  notwith- 
standing they  stood  on  the  open  Beach  expos'd  to  the  Fire 
of  the  Enemy's  Cannon  from  the  Town  and  their  Mus- 
quetry  from  the  Boats. 

That  notwithstanding  an  incessant  fire  from  the  Enemy's 
Cannon  and  Mortars  in  the  Town  at  the  distance  of  5913 
feet  from  it,  and  from  the  Island  Battery  at  the  distance  of 
4800  feet,  our  Troops  by  the  next  day  clear'd  three  of  the 
Cannon  in  the  Grand  Battery,  which  pointed  against  the 
Town,  and  return'd  their  fire  upon  the  Enemy  there,  as  also 
from  other  of  the  Guns  which  pointed  against,  the  Island 
Battery,  and  were  by  degrees  unspik'd  in  a  few  days.  That 
our  Troops  within  the  Compass  of  23  days  from  the  time 
of  their  first  landing  erected  five  fascine  Batteries  against 
the  Town  consisting  of  Cannon  some  of  42le  Shott,  others 
of  22le  others  of  i81e,  and  others  of  gle  Mortars  of  13,  11  and 
9  Inches  Diameter,  with  some  Cohorns,  all  which  were  trans- 
ported by  hand  with  incredible  Labour  and  Difficulty,  and 
most  of  'em  above  two  Miles  ;  all  the  Ground  over  which  they 
were  drawn,  except  small  Patches  or  Hills  of  Rocks,  being  a 
deep  Morass,  in  which  whilst  the  Cannon  were  upon  Wheels 
they  several  times  sunk  so  deep  as  not  only  to  bury  the 
Carriages  but  the  whole  Body  of  the  Cannon  likewise. 

Horses  and  Oxen  could  not  be  employed  in  this  Service, 
but  all  must  be  drawn  by  Men,  themselves  up  to  the  Knees 
in  Mud  at  the  same  time ;  the  Nights  in  which  the  Work 
was  to  be  done  cold  and  foggy ;  their  Tents  bad,  there 
being  no  proper  Materials  for  Tents  to  be  had  in  New  Eng- 
land at  the  Outsett  of  the  Expedition  ;  but  notwithstanding 
these  Difficulties  and  many  of  the  peoples  being  barefooted 
and  almost  without  Cloaths  by  means  of  this  Service  (in  which 
they  had  worn  'em  out)  and  their  being  taken  down  with 
fluxes,  so  that  at  one  time  there  was  1500  Men  incapable 
of  Duty  occasioned  by  their  fatigue,  they  went  on  chear- 

275 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

fully  without  being  discouraged  or  murmuring,  and  by 
the  help  of  Sledges  transported  the  Cannon  and  Mortars 
over  these  Ways,  which  the  French  had  always  thought  un- 
passable  for  such  heavy  Weights,  and  was  indeed  imprac- 
ticable by  any  People  of  less  Resolution  and  Perseverance,  or 
less  Experience  in  removing  heavy  Bodies ;  and  besides  this 
they  had  all  their  Provisions  and  heavy  Ammunition  which 
they  daily  made  Use  of  to  bring  from  the  Camp  over  the 
same  Way  upon  their  backs. 

To  annoy  our  people  in  making  their  Approaches  and 
carrying  on  their  Batteries  the  Enemy  erected  new  Works 
where  they  mounted  some  Cannon,  from  whence  as  well  as 
from  the  Cannon  of  other  Batteries  and  from  their  Mortars 
they  continually  maintain'd  a  strong  fire  till  their  Cannon 
was  silenced  by  being  dismounted  or  having  their  Men 
beat  off  by  our  Cannon. 

The  most  advanc'd  of  our  five  Batteries  which  was  finish'd 
on  the  17th  of  May,  was  within  the  Distance  of  250  yards 
from  the  West  Gate  of  the  Town,  so  that  from  this  Bat- 
tery several  of  the  Enemy  were  kill'd  by  our  Musquetry, 
as  were  some  of  our  Men  by  the  Enemy's  from  the  Walls ; 
and  indeed  this  Battery  was  so  near  the  Enemys  Works 
that  our  Men  were  obliged  to  load  the  Cannon  there  under 
the  fire  of  the  Musquetry,  which  was  very  sharp  on  both 
Sides,  the  Enemy  generally  opening  the  Action  every  Morn- 
ing with  the  Fire  of  their  small  Arms  upon  this  Battery 
for  two  Hours,  which  was  constantly  return'd  with  Advantage 
on  our  Side. 

The  Execution  done  from  these  and  the  Grand  Battery 
was  very  considerable ;  The  West  Gate  was  entirely  beat 
down,  the  Wall  adjoining  very  much  batter'd,  and  a  breach 
made  in  it  at  about  10  feet  from  the  bottom  of  the  Wall. 

The  circular  Battery  of  16  Cannon  24  Pounders  near  the 
West  Gate  (and  the  principal  one  against  Ships  next  to  the 
Grand  Battery  and  Island  Battery)  was  almost  entirely 
ruined,  and  all  the  Cannon  but  3  dismounted  :  Their  North 
East  Battery  consisting  of  2  Lines  of  42  and  32  pounders  in 
all   20  Cannon   (another  principal   Battery  against   Ships) 

376 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

was  damaged  and  the  Men  beat  off  from  their  Guns  ;  the  West 
Flank  of  the  Kings  Bastion  belonging  to  the  Citadel,  and 
the  Battery  there  of  six  24  pounders  which  pointed  to  the 
Land  Slide,  and  greatly  annoyed  our  Works,  was  almost 
demolished ;  two  Cavaliers  of  two  24  Pounders  each  raised 
during  the  Siege,  and  two  other  Cannon  of  the  same  Weight 
of  Metal  run  out  at  two  Embrasures  cut  thro'  the  parapet 
near  the  West  Gate  at  the  same  time,  all  pointing  against  our 
Batteries,  were  damaged  and  silenced:  The  Citadel  was 
very  much  damaged,  several  Houses  in  the  City  entirely 
demolished,  and  almost  every  one  more  or  less  hurt,  and 
Morepas  Gate  at  the  Eastermost  Part  of  the  City  shatterd. 
As  cross  fires  from  the  Cannon  and  Mortars  and  even 
from  our  Musquetry  rang'd  thro'  the  Houses  and  Streets 
in  every  Part  of  the  City,  and  thro'  the  Enemy's  Parade, 
whereby  many  were  kill'd,  it  drove  the  Inhabitants  out  of 
their  Houses  into  Casmets  and  other  cover'd  Holes,  where 
they  were  obliged  to  take  Refuge  for  several  Weeks ;  and 
besides  this  the  Fire  from  the  Grand  Battery  damaged  also 
the  Barracks  of  the  Island  Battery.  During  this  time  our 
Parties  of  Scouts  so  thoroughly  rang'd  the  Woods  that  they 
seldom  return'd  without  bringing  in  some  Prisoners,  which 
very  much  confin'd  the  Enemy  within  their  Walls,  who 
were  constantly  worsted  in  all  Skirmishes,  and  repulsed  in 
every  Sally  which  they  made,  and  frequently  by  an  inferior 
Number  of  our  Men,  and  with  very  little  Loss  on  these  Oc- 
casions sustained  on  our  Side  :  the  chief  of  which  was  a 
Party  of  18  of  our  Men  straggling  contrary  to  Orders  being 
surprized  and  cut  off  by  a  large  Number  of  Indians,  and 
another  of  9  coming  on  Shoar  out  of  one  of  our  Cruizers  to 
water  without  their  Arms  being  likewise  surpriz'd  and  cut  off 
by  some  Indians.  That  on  the  26th.  of  May  after  some 
ineffectual  Preparations  for  making  an  Attack  upon  the 
Enemy's  Island  Battery,  which  is  a  strong  Fort  built  on  a 
rocky  Island  at  the  Entrance  into  the  Harbour,  mounted 
with  30  Cannon  of  281e  Shott,  and  having  several  Swivel 
Guns  upon  its  Breast  Work,  and  two  Brass  10  Inch  Mortars 
and  180  Men,  it  was  at  Night  attempted  by  a  Party  of  400 

277 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  our  Men  in  Boats ;  but  from  the  Strength  of  the  Place 
and  the  Advantage  which  the  Enemy  had  by  being  under 
Cover,  and  our  Men  expos'd  in  open  Boats,  the  Surf  running 
high,  our  Men  not  being  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the 
best  Places  for  landing,  and  the  Enemy  besides  (as  is  most 
probable)  being  appriz'd  of  their  Design,  they  were  re- 
puls'd  with  the  Loss  of  having  about  60  killed  and  drowned, 
and  116  taken  Prisoners,  yet  under  these  Disadvantages 
several  of  'em  advanc'd  within  the  Enemy's  Battery,  and 
maintain'd  a  fight  with  'em  for  some  time  before  they  sur- 
render'd,  and  kill'd  some  of  'em. 

That  it  being  judg'd  of  the  utmost  Consequence  to  make 
ourselves  Masters  of  the  Island  Battery,  as  it  was  thought 
extremely  dangerous  for  his  Majesty's  Ships  to  have  enter'd 
the  Harbour  'till  the  Enemy  could  be  annoyed  in  that  Bat- 
tery ;  and  it  being  after  the  last  Attempt  thought  impracti- 
cable to  reduce  it  by  Boats,  it  was  determined  to  erect  a 
Battery  near  the  Light  House  opposite  to  it  at  3400  feet 
distance  from  it,  and  the  same  was  by  the  nth.  of  June, 
notwithstanding  the  almost  insuperable  Difhculties  which 
attended  the  drawing  of  the  Cannon  up  a  steep  Bank  and 
Rock,  rais'd  in  such  a  manner  as  not  to  be  expos'd  to  more 
than  four  of  the  Enemy's  Cannon,  and  at  the  same  time  to 
flank  a  Line  of  above  twenty  of  their  Guns,  and  two  i81e 
Pounders  were  on  that  day  mounted  and  began  to  play,  and 
by  the  14th.  of  June  4  more  Cannon  of  iSleShottwere  added, 
and  on  the  15th.  a  Mortar  of  13  Inches  diameter  was  remov'd 
thither,  out  of  which  19  Bombs  were  thrown,  17  whereof  fell 
within  the  Island  Battery,  and  one  of  'em  upon  the  Maga- 
zine ;  And  this  together  with  the  Fire  from  our  Cannon,  to 
which  the  Enemy  was  very  much  expos'd,  they  having  but 
little  to  shelter  'em  from  the  Shott,  which  rang'd  quite  thro' 
their  Line  of  Barracks,  so  terrified  'em  that  many  left  the 
Fort  and  ran  into  the  Water  for  Refuge. 

And  now  the  Grand  Battery  being  in  our  Possession,  the 
Island  Battery  (esteem'd  by  the  French  the  Palladium  of 
Louisbourg)  so  much  annoyed  from  the  Light  House  Bat- 
tery,   that   they   could   not  entertain  hopes   of  keeping  it 

278 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

much  longer;  the  Enemy's  North  East  Battery  being  dam- 
aged and  so  much  exposed  to  the  Fire  from  our  advanc'd 
Battery  that  they  could  not  stand  to  their  Guns,  the  cir- 
cular Battery  ruined,  and  all  its  Guns  but  three  dismounted, 
whereby  the  Harbour  was  disarm'd  of  all  its  principal  Bat- 
teries ;  The  West  Gate  of  the  City  being  demolished  and  a 
Breach  made  in  the  adjoining  Wall,  the  West  Flank  of  the 
Kings  Bastion  almost  ruined,  and  most  of  their  other  Guns, 
which  had  been  mounted  during  the  time  of  the  Siege  being 
silenced,  all  the  Houses  and  other  Buildings  within  the  City 
(some  of  which  were  quite  demolished)  so  damaged  that  but 
one  among  'em  was  left  unhurt ;  the  Enemy  extremely  har- 
rassed  by  their  long  Confinemt.  within  their  Casmets  and 
other  cover'd  Holes,  and  their  Stock  of  Ammunition  being 
almost  exhausted,  Monsf  Du  Chambon  sent  out  a  Flag  of 
Truce  to  the  Camp  on  the  15th.  day  of  June  in  the  Afternoon 
desiring  time  to  consider  of  Articles  of  Capitulation,  which 
was  accordingly  granted  'em  till  next  Morning,  when  they 
sentArticlesin,  which  were  rejected  by  the  General  and  Com- 
modore and  others  propos'd  by  'em  in  their  Stead,  and  ac- 
cepted by  the  Enemy ;  and  Hostages  being  exchang'd  on 
the  same  day  for  the  Performance  of  the  Articles,  on  the 
17th.  of  June  the  City  was  surrender'd  to  Mr.  Warren  and 
General  Pepperrell  and  the  Garrison  consisting  of  about 
650  regular  Troops,  and  the  Inhabitants  of  the  City  being 
about  1300  effective  Men  besides  Women  and  Children  made 
Prisoners  by  Capitulation,  with  the  Loss  on  our  Side  of  no 
more  than  loi  Men  killed  by  the  Enemy  and  all  other  Acci- 
dents from  the  time  of  their  landing  to  the  Reduction  of 
the  Place,  and  about  30  which  died  of  Sickness. 

I  omit  mentioning  the  breaking  up  of  the  Settlements  at 
St.  Peters  and  8  other  fishing  Settlements  upon  this  Island, 
and  the  Burning  of  several  Houses  at  St.  John's  Island  within 
the  time  of  the  Siege  by  Companies  put  on  board  some  of 
our  Cruizers. 

Your  Excy's.  most  Humble 
and  Obedient  servt. 

W.  Shirley. 
279 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY   TO  THE  DUKE  OF 
NEWCASTLE 

[Extract  *] 

Louisbourg,  October  29,  1745. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

The  late  Season  of  the  year  making  it  dangerous  for  me 
to  delay  my  Return  to  Boston  longer,  I  shall  Embark  for 
that  Place  in  two  days  leaving  in  this  Garrison  2250  private 
Centinels,  Corporals  and  Sergeants  and  Commission'd 
Officers  being  all  among  those  I  found  here,  that  were  either 
fit  for  Duty,  or  whom  it  was  not  most  for  his  Majesty's 
Service  to  dismiss,  or  to  permit  to  go  to  New  England  upon 
Furlo  to  raise  recruits,  or  as  Agents  to  fetch  supplies  for 
those  who  stay  behind ;  and  have  omitted  nothing  in  my 
Power  to  make  the  Troops  easy  and  satisfy'd  in  their  Duty 
here  'till  the  Arrival  of  the  two  Regiments  from  Gibraltar, 
and  the  Garrison  can  be  furnish'd  with  its  Complement  of 
Troops  upon  another  Establishment,  and  to  put  their  Bar- 
racks under  such  a  Regulation,  as  may  best  preserve  the 
men's  health.  I  have  also  inspected  the  State  of  the  Ord- 
nance Stores  and  put  'em  into  the  best  Condition  I  can,  pro- 
moted the  repairs  of  the  Works  and  Houses,  and  the  making 
of  additional  Barracks  for  the  Reception  of  the  Troops  ex- 
pected here,  as  far  as  I  could  ;  and  the  laying  in  sufficient 
Quantities  of  Provisions  and  Cioathing ;  And  to  Guard 
against  any  Surprize,  have  order'd  four  Companies  of  Scouts 
of  50  men  each  well  provided  with  Snow  Shoes  and  Mog- 
gisons  to  be  rais'd,  and  two  Guard  Houses  for  a  Constant 
Watch  to  be  set  up  without  the  City,  where  they  may  com- 
mand a  View  of  the  Country  and  Bay ;  and  shall  leave  the 
place  as  defensible  as  I  can  with  Mr  Warren,  who  has  him- 
self strengthen'd  the  Garrison  by  the  additional  Artillery, 
and  Ordnance  Stores,  which  he  has  drawn  into  it  from  the 
Ships,  and  will  further  secure  the  Harbour  by  a  Boom  and 
Fire  Vessell. 

ip.  R.  O.,  C  O.  5,  900,  p.  255. 

280 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

As  to  the  sea  force  necessary  to  be  sent  here  in  the  Spring 
for  the  protection  of  this  Place,  and  the  time  when  the  Ships 
should  arrive  in  these  Seas  I  beg  leave  to  refer  your  Grace 
to  Mr  Warren.  The  number  of  Troops  adviseable  to  be 
maintain'd  in  the  Garrison  inclusive  of  the  Train  of  Artillery, 
'till  it  shall  be  strengthen'd  with  a  Number  of  Settlers,  which 
I  hope  it  may  be  within  a  year  or  two,  seems  to  me  to  be 
4000  at  least  including  a  Train  of  Artillery  consisting  of 
two  Companies,  after  which  I  should  think  3000  Soldiers 
besides  a  proper  Train  of  Artillery  would  be  sufficient  for  the 
Defence  of  it  during  the  Warr,  and  half  that  number  or  per- 
haps 1000  men  exclusive  of  the  Train  of  Artillery  in  time  of 
Peace.  A  Civil  Government,  the  same  general  Toleration  of 
Protestants  of  all  Denominations,  as  is  express'd  in  the  New 
England  Charter,  a  privilege  from  Arrests  for  five  or  seven 
years,  a  Distribution  of  some  of  the  Lands  among  the  first  Set- 
tlers, and  a  free  port  (except  as  to  the  importation  of  European 
Commodities,  without  their  having  been  first  laden  in  Eng- 
land, which  license  in  my  opinion  would  have  a  Dangerous 
Tendency  to  throw  the  European  Trade  to  this  place,  and 
indeed  to  all  the  Colonies  into  the  Dutch  Channell)  if  con- 
sistent with  the  Acts  of  Trade  now  in  force,  would  be  con- 
siderable Steps  towards  forwarding  the  Settlement  of  this 
Island,  and  with  the  Advantage  of  the  Fishery  here,  es- 
pecially if  large  Convoys  from  the  West  Indies  and  all  the 
Colonies  were  to  be  made  up  here,  according  to  Mr  Warren's 
proposal,  could  not  fail,  I  think,  of  soon  drawing  hither  a 
very  large  number  of  Inhabitants. 

For  the  manner  of  finishing  the  Works  of  the  Garrison 
necessary  to  be  compleated  in  order  to  put  it  into  the  most 
defensible  posture,  Mr  Engineer  Bastide  has  transmitted 
to  the  Board  of  Ordnance  a  plan  of  his  projections,  concern- 
ing which  I  can't  pretend  to  give  any  opinion ;  but  would 
observe  to  your  Grace  that  proper  directions  in  that  respect 
should  b'^  a\^rf^r,^  with  the  utmost  Dispatch ;  and  in  particu- 
lar it  seems  of  great  Consequence  that  the  weak  parts  of 
the  Works,  which,  among  other  Inducements,  put  me  upon 
making  the  late  attempt  against  this  Place,  and  are  the 

281 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

low  Courtain  against  a  Cove  fronting  the  Sea  at  the  South 
East  part  of  the  City,  and  the  row  of  Pickets  in  a  Pond  at 
a  small  distance  from  it  to  the  North  East,  and  the  whole 
wall  fronting  the  Harbour  from  the  Flagstaff  in  the  North 
East  Bastion  to  the  West  Gate,  and  which  are  plainly  un- 
finished parts  of  the  works,  should  be  immediately  strength- 
en'd  in  the  most  secure  manner  and  rais'd.  The  two  first- 
mention'd  parts  of  .the  Works  seem  the  most  necessary 
to  be  finish'd ;  after  which  if  the  last  mention'd  part  was  to 
be  finish'd  by  degrees,  I  believe  all  the  other  Works  might 
remain  in  the  form  they  are  in,  with  being  repair'd  and 
strengthen'd,  which  may  be  done  without  any  great  Ex- 
pence  :  Though  I  wish  some  good  projection  had  been  made 
for  securing  the  Landside  of  the  Grand  Battery  or  at  least 
making  it  more  tenable  against  great  Artillery,  than  it  is 
at  present.  I  would  also  observe  to  your  Grace  that  I 
perceive  by  Mr  Bastide's  plan  the  West  Gate  newly  built 
at  the  Expence  of  about  1 300 i:"  Sterling  with  the  choicest  of 
the  Stone  here,  and  which  I  mention'd  in  a  former  Letter 
to  your  Grace  to  be  built  up  in  the  same  weak  manner  that 
it  was  at  first  by  the  French,  and  to  require  being  strength- 
en'd with  Town  Timber  to  make  it  endure  a  Battery,  is 
now  propos'd  (I  suppose  for  that  reason)  to  serve  only  for 
this  Winter,  and  the  Road  is  design'd  to  be  turn'd,  and  an- 
other Gate  built  a  little  to  the  South  of  the  present  one. 

I  should  not  trouble  your  Grace  with  such  particulars,  or 
go  so  far  beyond  my  line  in  the  Business  of  an  Engineer,  if 
I  was  not  exceedingly  dissatisfy'd  at  the  present  Management 
of  the  repairs  of  the  Works,  the  ruinous  Condition  of  some 
of  'em,  and  the  Waste  of  Money  and  Time  in  doing  some 
things  not  very  necessary  and  others  in  an  ineffectual  man- 
ner ;  and  I  think  it  my  Duty  to  observe  to  your  Grace  that 
the  chief  Direction  of  these  Works  should  be  under  the  ablest 
Engineer,  which  can  be  spar'd ;  I  doubt  the  cost  of  finishing 
'em,  and  the  maintenance  of  the  Garrison  will,  from  the 
Expence  of  what  has  been  done  upon  the  work  since  the 
Reduction  of  the  place,  and  the  present  maintenance  of  the 
Garrison,  appear  extraordinary,  but  I  don't  think  the  present 

282 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Charges  a  just  rule  for  estimating  the  future  necessary  Ex- 
pence  ;  And  though  it  appears  that  the  French  King  must  have 
been  at  an  immense  Charge  in  fortifying  this  place,  yet  it  is 
most  evident  that  from  the  value  which  his  Subjects  and  I 
believe  all  the  British  Colonies  likewise  set  upon  it,  that  no 
expence  will  by  them  be  thought  too  much  for  it. 

Among  other  measures  necessary  to  be  taken  for  pre- 
serving this  Acquisition  to  His  Majesty  putting  the  Inhabit- 
ants of  Nova  Scotia  upon  a  proper  foot  of  Subjection  and 
fidelity  to  the  Crown  of  Great  Britain  seems  to  be  an  Es- 
sential one ;  For  at  present  upon  the  landing  of  looo  French 
Troops  in  that  Province  with  a  suitable  Train  of  Artillery 
for  attacking  his  Majesty's  Garrison  at  Annapolis  Royal  all 
the  French  Inhabitants,  among  whom  may  be  reckon'd 
between  5  and  6000  Effective  men,  together  with  the  Cape 
Sable,  Penobscot,  St.  John's,  and  other  neighbouring  Indians 
computed  at  1500  fighting  men  more  must  be  expected  to 
join  'em ;  so  that  upon  the  Reduction  of  that  Place  the 
Enemy  would  soon  have  a  force  of  8000  Men  with  perhaps 
more  than  half  that  number  of  Canadeans  ready  within  a 
few  Leagues  of  this  Island  to  land  and  join  a  Number  of 
other  French  Troops  from  Europe,  in  attempting  to  regain 
the  Possession  of  Louisbourg.  And  this  makes  it  seem  so 
necessary  that  His  Majesty  should  at  this  Juncture  be 
thoroughly  appriz'd  of  the  uncommon  circumstances  of 
that  Province,  in  which  the  number  of  the  Inhabitants  in- 
stead of  Strengthening  his  Garrison  and  Government  there, 
as  they  ought  to  do,  endangers  the  Safety  of  'em,  that  I 
have  endeavour'd  in  the  inclos'd  Representation,  which  is 
chiefly  extracted  from  an  Account,  which  Mr  Sherriff  the 
present  Secretary  of  Nova  Scotia,  who  has  been  privy  to 
the  Transact- jns  there  almost  from  the  first  Settlement  of 
the  Garrison,  drew  up  at  my  request,  to  state  the  Circum- 
stances of  the  Province  in  the  fullest  manner  for  your  Grace's 
Consideration  of  what  may  be  most  adviseable  for  his  Maj- 
esty to  do  for  the  better  Settlement  of  his  Government  within 
it,  and  the  Security  of  his  Garrison  at  Annapolis  Royal. 

Mr  Warren  seems  strongly  inclin'd  to  the  Scheme  first 

283 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

propos'd  in  the  inclos'd  Representation  for  putting  the  prov- 
ince of  Nova  Scotia  into  a  better  State,  but  the  other  may 
possibly  be  the  most  secure,  though  not  so  expeditious. 

I  took  the  Liberty  to  mention  in  a  former  Letter  to  your 
Grace,  that  I  thought,  if  the  Expedition  against  Cape  Breton 
should  succeed,  a  Spirit  would  be  immediately  rais'd  in  the 
Colonies  for  pushing  that  success  as  far  as  Canada ;  which 
observation  I  find  was  not  ill  grounded ;  And  I  trouble  your 
Grace  with  the  Repetition  of  it  now,  because  the  Reduction 
of  that  Country  to  the  Obedience  of  his  Majesty  seems  to  be 
the  most  effectual  means  of  securing  to  the  Crown  of  Great 
Britain  not  only  Nova  Scotia,  and  this  Acquisition,  but 
the  whole  Northern  Continent  as  far  back  as  the  French 
Settlements  on  the  River  of  Missisippi,  which  are  about 
2000  miles  distance  from  Canada,  by  making  all  the  Indians 
inhabiting  within  that  Tract,  (who  are  now  chiefly,  almost 
wholly  indeed  in  the  French  Interest)  dependent  upon  the 
English ;  the  immediate  consequence  of  which  would  be 
throwing  the  whole  furr  Trade,  except  such  part  of  it  as  the 
French  Settlements  at  Missisippi  might  keep,  into  the  hands 
of  His  Majesty's  Subjects ;  breaking  up  all  the^French  Fish- 
ing Settlements  in  the  Gulph  and  river  of  St  Lawrence,  and 
even  on  the  back  of  Newfoundland,  and  Securing  the  whole 
Codfishery  to  the  English ;  which  besides  the  Profits  arising 
from  that  part  which  the  French  lately  had  of  it  amounting 
to  near  one  Million  Sterl  as  computed  in  the  account  of  it, 
which  I  lately  inclos'd  to  your  Grace  would  be  farther  Bene- 
ficial to  the  British  Subjects  by  the  great  Consumption  of 
Rum,  and  Cioathing  necessary  for  the  Men  in  carrying  on 
the  Fishery,  and  the  great  Quantity  of  Shipping,  small 
Craft  and  Fishing  Gear  of  all  Sorts  necessarily  employed  in 
it,  which  would  in  such  Case  be  all  British  :  To  what  I  also 
mention'd  concerning  the  Nursery  of  Seamen,  which  that 
Fishery  would  maintain  for  the  Royal  Navy,  I  may  add, 
that  from  the  Healthfulness  of  the  Climates  on  this  Con- 
tinent and  the  Surprizing  Growth  of  it's  Inhabitants  within 
the  last  Century  it  may  be  expected  that  in  one  or  two  more 
centuries  there  will  be  such  an  addition  from  hence  to  the 

284 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Subjects  of  the  Crown  of  Great  Britain,  as  may  make  'em 
vye  for  numbers  with  the  subjects  of  France,  and  lay  a  found- 
ation for  a  superiority  of  British  Power  upon  the  Continent 
of  Europe  at  the  same  time  that  it  secures  that  which  the 
Royal  Navy  of  Great]  Britain  has  already  at  Sea ;  and  this 
is  a  remarkable  Difference  between  the  other  acquisitions 
in  America  belonging  to  the  several  Crowns  in  Europe  and 
this  Continent,  that  the  others  diminish  the  Mother  Coun- 
try's Inhabitants,  as  Jamaica,  Barbadoes,  and  the  other 
Southern  Collonies  belonging  to  Great  Britain  have  done, 
and  the  Spanish  West  Indies  have  done  even  to  the  exhaust- 
ing of  Old  Spain. 

In  the  mean  while  the  Vent  of  the  Woollen  Manufacture 
and  other  European  Commodities  from  Great  Britain  to 
these  Colonies  must  be  Increasing  in  proportion  to  the  In- 
crease of  their  Inhabitants ;  and  the  Mother  Country  will 
be  independent  of  all  foreign  States  for  Naval  Stores,  which 
she  will  purchase  from  thence,  with  her  own  produce,  and 
at  moderate  rates ;  she  will  supply  all  the  Roman  Catholick 
States  with  their  Baccaleau ;  The  profits  of  the  whole  Trade 
of  these  Colonies  will  all  finally  center  in  her,  her  Navigation 
will  be  greatly  Increas'd,  and  the  Ballance  of  her  growing 
Trade  to  North  America  will  for  ever  be  in  her  favour :  And 
what  seems  to  make  these  Advantages  still  the  more  valuable 
is,  that  they  weaken  the  Power  of  France  whilst  they  add 
to  that  of  Great  Britain. 

******* 

Upon  my  arrival  at  Boston,  no  Endeavour  of  mine  shall 
be  wanting  for  the  Support  of  this  Acquisition  from  New 
England  upon  any  Emergency,  as  his  Majesty's  Service 
shall  require ;  and  in  particular  I  shall  concert  measures 
with  Sr  William  Pepperell  for  raising  one  or  more  American 
Regiments  out  of  the  New  England  Troops,  as  his  Majesty 
shall  determine,  for  Garrisoning  it,  and  employ  my  utmost 
Influence  for  forwarding  English  settlement  here  :  and  what- 
ever other  branch  of  His  Majesty's  service  my  situation  in 
New  England  may  put  it  into  my  power  to  promote,  I  shall 
with  the  greatest  zeal  and  attention  employ  myself  in  doing. 

28s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

And  I  can't  but  hope  that  the  province  of  New  York  in 
particular  may  be  induc'd,  if  the  support  of  this  Place  should 
require  it,  to  send  some  men  in  the  Spring  for  that  purpose, 
though  they  could  not  be  prevail'd  upon  to  do  it  hitherto,  nor 
to  send  one  man  to  mann  the  Vigilant,  notwithstanding 
Mr  Warren  has,  I  am  perswaded,  us'd  his  utmost  Interest 
with  'em  for  those  purposes ;  and  (as  Mr  Clinton  informs 
me)  they  had  7,  or  800  Sailors  walking  the  streets  there 
every  day  out  of  Employ. 

In  the  mean  time  I  find  my  self,  from  the  uneasiness,  which 
I  perceive  is  growing  here  at  my  not  relieving  the  New  Eng- 
land auxiliaries  in  his  Majesty's  Garrison  at  Annapolis 
Royal,  according  to  the  Terms  of  my  proclamation,  under  a 
Necessity  of  drawing  'em  out  of  the  Garrison  this  Fall ; 
otherwise  all  faith  will  be  destroy'd  upon  any  future  Emer- 
gencies for  his  Majesty's  Service,  which  may  require  a  Proc- 
lamation from  any  of  his  Governments  in  the  Colonies  to 
promote  it ;  and  as  I  think  no  possible  Danger  can  ensue  to 
the  Garrison  during  the  Winter  from  the  drawing  off  these 
Soldiers ;  and  that  some  recruits  will  in  all  probability  be 
sent  there  from  England  to  reinforce  it  by  Spring  at  furthest, 
and  in  the  meantime  it  is  known  there  will  be  a  Strong  Garri- 
son in  the  Neighbourhood  of  it  here,  I  hope  there  can  be  no 
risque  in  my  acting  thus ;  and  it  seems  evident  to  me  that 
his  Majesty's  Service  requires  particularly  at  this  Juncture, 
that  I  should  as  inviolably  observe  the  proclamations  I  have 
been  obliged  to  issue  for  promoting  it,  as  is  possible.  However 
if  Mr  Mascarene  thinks  it  will  endanger  the  Safety  of  the  Gar- 
rison I  shall  desire  him  in  such  Case  to  retain  the  Auxiliaries 

°    '     I  am  with  the  most  Dutifull  Regards 

My  Lord  Duke 
Your  Grace's  most  Obedient 
and  most  Devoted  Servant 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed:  J      .  ,  r\  ^        ^l 

Louisbourg,  Octr  29th  1745. 

GovR  Shirley 

'Sjk  Janry  25. 

286 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  1 

Louisbourg,  November  6th,  1745. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

I  should  be  unjust  to  the  Gentlemen,  who  have  been 
particularly  Serviceable  in  the  Expedition  against  this  place, 
if  I  was  not  to  represent  their  Services  to  your  Grace  in  a 
just  light.  Next  to  Lieutenant  General  Pepperell,  whose 
Services  his  Majesty  has  already  consider'd  and  distinguish'd 
with  his  Royal  Favour,  I  take  the  liberty  to  mention  those 
of  Brigadier  General  Waldo,  a  Gentleman  who  had  the 
Honour  to  be  personally  known  to  your  Grace  when  he  was 
in  England.  He  rais'd  and  commanded  a  very  good  Regi- 
ment for  His  Majesty's  Service  upon  this  Occasion,  and  by  his 
indefatigable  application  to  the  Duty  of  his  Post,  and  good 
Conduct  and  behaviour  in  every  part  of  it  through  the  whole 
course  of  the  Siege  has  greatly  recommended  himself  to  me ; 
and  as  I  am  sensible  too  that  his  Private  Affairs  have  very 
much  suffer'd  by  his  Absence  from  New  England,  and  that 
by  his  Interest  there  he  is  capable  of  raising  a  considerable 
Number  of  Men,  if  his  Majesty  should  think  fit  to  set  on 
foot  an  Expedition  against  Canada,  and  that  he  would  exert 
himself  upon  such  an  Occasion  to  the  utmost,  I  think  my  self 
obliged  to  represent  him  to  your  Grace  as  a  Person  fit  to  be 
recommended  to  His  Majesty  for  the  Command  of  one  of  the 
American  Regiments  to  be  rais'd  here,  in  case  his  Majesty 
shall  determine  to  have  more  than  two  rais'd,  or  I  should 
be  honour'd  with  the  Command  of  General  Phillips's  Regi- 
ment (if  that  should  be  vacant)  so  as  to  make  room  for  him 
to  have  one  of  the  two  Regiments,  in  case  no  more  than  two 
should  be  rais'd.  If  he  can't  be  rewarded  this  way  I  believe  it 
would  be  for  his  Majesty's  Service,  if  Mr  Waldo  was  to  be 
appointed  Lieutenant  Governour  of  this  Place,  (provided  it 
would  be  agreeable  to  Mr  Warren  and  he  recommends  no 
other  Person  for  his  Lieutenant)  as  I  am  persuaded  in  the 

1  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  269. 
287 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Absence  of  the  Commander  in  Chief  he  woud  be  capable  of 
promoting  the  Settlement  of  it  from  the  General  Acquaint- 
ance, he  has  in  these  parts ;  and  I  find  Sr  William  Pepperell 
would  decline  this  Post  if  it  was  to  be  offer'd  to  him  :  Mr 
Waldo  has  also  been  more  conversant  in  making  new  Settle- 
ments, than  any  Gentleman  I  know  of  in  New  England, 
and  has  had  as  large  concerns  in  the  New  England  Fishery, 
as  any ;  both  which  matters  it  may  be  of  service  for  a 
Lieutenant  Governour  at  least  of  this  place  to  be  acquainted 
with,  has  a  most  unwearied  application  to  any  Service  he 
undertakes,  a  large  Interest  in  unsettled  Lands  in  New  Eng- 
land, the  value  of  which  would  greatly  rise,  if  this  Acquisition, 
and  Nova  Scotia  was  to  be  well  secur'd  to  His  Majesty,  and 
is  besides  a  Gentleman  in  whom  the  People  in  New  England 
would  have  a  Confidence. 

Lieutenant  Colonel  Gridley,  who  had  under  my  Commis- 
sion the  Chief  Command  of  the  Train  of  Artillery  and  the 
direction  of  the  Batteries  during  the  Siege,  and  particularly 
of  the  Battery  rais'd  at  the  Lighthouse  over  against  the 
Enemy's  Island  Battery,  and  which  so  greatly  annoy'd  it, 
has  by  his  Services  also  deserved  to  be  recommended  to  your 
Grace  for  being  Establish'd  in  his  Post,  if  that  may  be  con- 
sistent with  the  Service. 

Mr  Benjamin  Green  who  has  behav'd  himself  in  the  Post  of 
Secretary  to  the  General  during  the  whole  Time  of  the  Serv- 
ice with  great  Fidelity  and  Diligence,  has  merited  from  me 
and  the  General,  to  be  recommended  to  your  Grace  as  a  fit 
person  to  be  Secretary  of  this  Acquisition,  when  erected  into 
a  Government  by  His  Majesty,  and  I  believe  will  have  Mr 
Warren's  recommendation  likewise  for  that  purpose. 

And  Mr  William  Winslow  whom  I  have  appointed  Com- 
missary General  of  the  provisions  and  Stores  to  the  Land 
forces  here,  I  take  the  liberty  to  recommend  to  your  Grace 
for  a  Confirmation  in  that  post,  which  recommendation  I  also 
believe  Mr  Warren  will  join  in. 

I  take  the  liberty  also  of  recommending  to  your  Grace's 
favour  Captain  Tyng,  who  commanded  a  Ship  of  20  Guns 
call'd  the  Massachusetts  Frigate,  and  had  the  command  of 

288 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

all  the  arm'd  Vessells  employ'd  by  that  Province,  and  the 
other  Colonies  in  the  Expedition  ('till  Mr  Warren's  Arrival 
at  Canso)  In  which  Service  he  underwent  great  Fatigue 
being  upon  his  Station  off  Louisbourg  Harbour  by  the  21st 
of  March,  and  continuing  upon  Duty  from  that  time  to  the 
End  of  the  Expedition,  in  all  which  time  he  behav'd  very 
well.  Captn  Tyng  was  also  last  year  in  the  Province  Galley, 
call'd  the  Prince  of  Orange,  of  great  Service  in  Succouring 
His  Majesty's  Garrison  at  Annapolis  Royal,  which  he  did  in 
pursuance  of  my  orders  with  great  Fidelity  and  Success, 
having  convoy'd  two  parties  of  the  New  England  Auxiliaries 
thither,  been  Instrumental  In  twice  raising  the  Siege,  besides 
making  another  visit  there  late  In  the  Fall  afterwards,  when  I 
sent  him  In  Company  with  two  more  Arm'd  Vessells  In  the 
Employ  of  the  Province  upon  Intelligence  that  the  Inhabit- 
ants of  Nova  Scotia  were  ripe  for  a  Revolt,  and  the  late 
Governour  Duquesnell  had  sent  a  Ship  of  24  Guns,  and  two 
other  arm.'d  Vessells  Into  Annapolis  Baison  In  expectation 
of  joining  Mr  Duvivier  in  an  Attempt  upon  his  Majesty's 
Garrison  there,  which  visit  had  the  Effect  to  make  those 
Vessells  quit  the  Baison  upon  their  getting  Notice  soon  after 
their  Arrival  there  of  the  Massachusetts  Vessells  being  to  be 
sent  thither  soon,  and  to  keep  the  Inhabitants  that  Winter 
in  a  better  awe  and  respect  of  the  Garrison.  For  which 
reasons  If  your  Grace  should  think  fit  to  recommend  Captain 
Tyng's  Services  to  be  distingulsh'd  with  some  mark  of  His 
Majesty's  Royal  Favour,  as  by  his  being  made  a  Post 
Captain,  or  in  such  other  way  as  shall  be  thought  proper, 
I  believe  It  might  have  a  good  Effect  for  his  Majesty's 
Service. 

I  owe  so  much  to  Mr  Thomas  Kilby's  Indefatigable  pains 
In  assisting  me  with  Intelligence,  and  every  way  forwarding 
and  promoting  the  Expedition  In  a  most  necessary  manner, 
whilst  it  was  forming,  that  I  should  be  exceedingly  unjust 
to  his  Services,  if  I  did  not  mention  'em  to  your  Grace, 
and  recommend  him  to  be  Keeper  of  the  Ordnance  Stores, 
or  some  other  post  here  equivalent  to  it.  I  believe  Mr 
Kilby's  Residence  here  would  be  of  Service  on  many  Accounts. 
VOL.  I  —  u  289 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

And  though  Lieutenant  Aldrlch  of  General  Phillips's  Regi- 
ment was  not  in  his  Majesty's  Service  upon  this  Expedition, 
yet  I  owe  so  much  to  him  for  the  Intelligence  he  gave  me  when 
I  first  entertain'd  Thoughts  of  setting  it  on  foot,  that  I  take 
the  liberty  of  making  a  favourable  mention  of  him  to  your 
Grace,  as  I  am  perswaded  he  is  a  good  Officer  and  of  great 
Zeal  for  his  Majesty's  Service.  But  among  others  whom  I 
would  represent  to  your  Grace,  as  deserving  of  his  Majesty's 
Favour  for  their  Services,  I  must  not  omit  mentioning  the 
Province  under  my  Government  in  particular,  as  I  have  it 
extremely  at  heart  that  the  people,  whom  I  have  been  so 
instrumental  in  leading  into  an  Expence  greatly  beyond  their 
Abilities  for  his  Majesty's  Service,  and  have  found  upon 
all  occasions  most  readily  dispos'd  to  promote  it,  should  not 
be  overburthen'd  with  a  Debt,  which  their  Zeal  and  Loyalty 
have  brought  upon  'em  ;  and  Justice  as  well  as  the  Aff"ection, 
which  I  bear  to  'em,  constrains  me  to  beseech  your  Grace 
to  recommend  their  Case  to  His  Majesty's  paternal  Care  and 
Tenderness  in  the  Strongest  manner. 


[I]  Am  with  the  highest  Regards 
My  Lord  Duke 

Your  Grace's  most  Obedient  and 
most  devoted  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed : 

Louisbourg  Novr  6th  &  20  1745 
GovR.  Shirley 
^  Janry  25. 


290 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE  LORDS 
COMMISSIONERS ' 

Abstract  of  a  Letter  from  William  Shirley  Esqr 
Governor   of   the   Massachusets    Bay,   dated 
at  Louisbourg  the  i6th  of  November  1745. 
and  read  January  the  28th,  1745/6. 

Mentions  his  Arrival  at  Louisbourg,  and  gives  some  Acct 
of  what  Mr  Warren  has  done  for  the  Defence  of  that  Place. 
Has  transmitted  to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  some  Proposals 
for  the  better  maintaining  and  supporting  this  valuable 
Acquisition.  His  Remarks  thereupon.  The  Necessity  of 
driving  the  French  out  of  Nova  Scotia,  and  the  Advantages 
that  will  accrue  to  Great  Britain  from  the  Reduction  of 
Canada  and  the  rest  of  the  French  Settlements  upon  the 
Continent  of  America. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE  DUKE  OF 
NEWCASTLE  2 

Louisbourg,  Noveifi.  20th,  1745. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

1  take  the  Liberty  to  request  of  your  Grace  that  if  his 
Majesty  should  be  pleas'd  to  make  Grants  of  any  Parcells 
of  Lands  on  Cape  Breton  to  private  Persons  I  may  be  rec- 
ommended to  His  Majesty  for  the  Grant  of  a  few  Veins 
of  Coal  lying  on  the  Back  Part  of  the  Island. 

If  to  the  many  other  favours,  which  your  Grace  has  been 
pleas'd  to  bestow  upon  me,  you  would  be  so  good  as  to  add 
this,  it  may  possibly  be  of  some  Service  to  my  Family  here- 
after, though  I  don't  apprehend  it  to  be  of  much  Value  in 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  923,  p.  165.  The  original  letter  comprising 
about  two  thousand  words  is  in  C.  O.  5,  885. 

2  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  282. 

291 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

present,  and  will  with  the  utmost  Gratitude  be  acknowl- 
edg'd  by 

My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Oblig'd 
and  most  Dutifull  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed : 

Louisbourg  Novr  20.  1745 

GovR  Shirley 
5  Janry 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL  ^ 

Sir, 

I  think  it  will  be  necessary  to  have  Evelath  dismissed  in 
order  to  make  room  for  Hall's  Regiment  to  do  Duty  with 
yours.  Be  pleas'd  to  think  of  it.  Will  you  propose  his  being 
dismiss'd  to  the  Admiral :  you  know  my  promise  to  him 
not  to  dismiss  any  field  officers  without  his  Consent. 

Yrs.  &c. 

W.  Shirley. 
Don't  forget  your  appointment 
with  me  at  one. 

Louisbourg  Novr,  22,  1745. 

To  Sir  William  Pepperell  Baronet. 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Pepperrell  Manuscripts, 
71  A,  p.  233.  This  letter  illustrates  again  the  care  with  which 
Shirley  acted  lest  that  harmony  with  the  British  regulars,  so 
essential  to  success,  should  be  lost.  The  Evelath  mentioned 
Is  Edward  Eveleth,  Lieutenant  Colonel  of  the  5th  Massachusetts 
Regiment  at  Louisbourg. 


292 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE ' 

Boston,  Decemr.  the  14th,  1745. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Six  days  ago  I  arriv'd  here  from  Louisbourg  having  left  the 
Garrison  there  upon  their  recovery  from  their  late  sickness, 
(which  I  hope  may  by  this  time  be  almost  if  not  quite  over) 
and  well  satisfy'd  to  stay  'till  June  under  the  Command  of 
Sir  William  Pepperell,  whom  I  have  engag'd  to  remain  with 
'em  'till  the  arrival  of  the  Troops  from  Gibralter,  or  at  least 
till  Mr  Warren's  Comission  for  the  Government  shall  come 
over;  so  that  I  hope  my  leaving  the  Soldiers  will  have  no 
ill  effect,  as  was  fear'd  here.  Just  before  I  sail'd  from 
Louisbourg  seventy  live  recruits  landed  from  Boston,  and 
in  my  Passage  I  met  a  Sloop  with  about  fifty  more  bound  for 
Louisbourg  from  the  same  place,  and  at  my  Arrival  here 
found  about  one  hundred  and  thirty  more  ready  to  embark  for 
the  Garrison,  all  which  with  one  hundred  and  seventy  more 
recruits  hourly  expected  at  Louisbourg  from  the  Govern- 
ment of  Connecticut  before  I  left  Cape  Breton  will  upon 
their  Arrival  make  the  number  of  private  Centinels  and  Non 
Comission'd  Officers,  which  I  left  in  the  Garrison,  2623, 
besides  more  than  a  proportion  of  Comission'd  Officers,  and 
provided  the  Sickness  abates,  as  I  hope  and  expect  it  will, 
render  the  place  stronger  than  the  Camp  was  some  time 
during  the  Siege,  when  they  have  had  fifteen  hundred  men  at 
a  time  down  with  Fluxes  and  Unserviceable. 

I  find  a  prospect  of  raising  150  or  200  more  recruits  here 
shortly,  and  shall  not  fail  to  use  my  utmost  endeavours  to 
influence  the  Neighbouring  Governments  to  furnish  their 
Quotas  towards  the  defence  of  this  important  Acquisition, 
though  I  have  no  hopes  of  getting  any  men  except  from  the 
Governments  of  New  England,  or  rather  from  two  of  'em 
only  besides  my  own  Government ;  an  officer  whom  I  per- 
mitted to  go  upon  Furlo  to  Rhode  Island  to  raise  recruits 

1  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  900,  p.  284. 
293 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

there  being  return'd  to  Louisbourg  after  several  weeks  ab- 
sence with  no  more  than  twelve  men ;  and  notwithstanding 
Mr  Warren  has  assur'd  me  that  he  has  some  influence  in 
New  York,  and  I  doubt  not  has  try'd  it  to  the  utmost,  not 
one  man  has  been  procur'd  from  thence  for  the  Garrison,  nor 
could  he  get  a  single  Marriner  for  his  Squadron,  though  Gov- 
ernour  Clinton  informs  me  there  were  eight  or  nine  hundred 
stout  Sailors  daily  walking  the  streets  there  out  of  employ, 
and  he  offer'd  to  pay  'em  down  the  Bounty  money  granted 
by  this  Government,  as  I  desired  him,  for  manning  the  Vigi- 
lant during  the  time  of  the  Expedition  only ;  so  that  no 
dependence  is  to  be  upon  that  Colony ;  and  indeed  I  am 
perswaded  that  Governour  Clinton  (for  whose  ready  assist- 
ance in  this  Expedition  and  upon  all  occasions  for  his  Maj- 
esty's Service  I  am  greatly  indebted  to  him)  if  the  people 
of  New  York  were  to  be  prevail'd  upon,  must  have  influenc'd 
'em  by  his  Superior  Interest  there  and  Generous  Publick 
Spirit  constantly  manifested  for  the  good  of  the  Colonies  as 
well  as  his  Majesty's  Service  among  'em. 

Among  those  who  are  gone  to  Louisbourg  I  have  the 
pleasure  to  find  that  some  families  are  already  gone  out  of 
this  Government  to  settle  there ;  and  I  hope  their  Example 
will  be  soon  foUow'd  by  some  out  of  other  Colonies ;  and  as 
it  seems  probable  that  the  Ordnance  Stores  and  Provisions 
for  the  Garrison  and  Cloathing  for  the  American  Troops 
from  England  may  not  arrive  at  Louisbourg  this  winter,  it 
is  very  happy  I  have  procur'd  those  Supplies  for  the  Garrison 
from  the  Colonies. 

Upon  my  Arrival  here  I  found  a  letter  from  Mr  Agent 
Kilby  informing  me  that  His  Majesty  had  determin'd  to 
Establish  two  American  Regiments  at  Louisbourg,  and  that 
I  was  to  be  Honour'd  with  the  Command  of  the  first  of  'em, 
for  which  mark  of  his  Majesty's  gracious  acceptance  of  my 
Services  I  hold  myself  bound  to  him  by  the  strongest  tye  of 
Duty  and  am  extremely  oblig'd  to  your  Grace's  goodness  for 
recommending  me  to  his  Majesty  for  that  Comand,  as  I  am 
for  the  other  Expressions  of  your  Grace's  regard  and  Friend- 
ship for  me,  with  which  your  Grace  is  pleas'd  to  Honour  me 

294 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

in  your  Letter,  and  when  the  Comisslons  arrive  I  shall  use 
my  utmost  Endeavours  to  raise  the  regiment,  but  as  I  find  by 
Mr  Kilby's  letter  that  the  Comissions  of  the  Field  Officers 
and  five  of  the  Captains  will  come  over  fill'd  up  with  Gentle- 
men from  England,  that  ten  of  the  Commissions  of  the  Lieu- 
tenants and  five  of  the  Ensigns  are  under  the  same  Circum- 
stances and  the  Comissions  for  Sir  William  Pepperell's 
Regiment  in  the  like  Condition,  I  am  affraid  it  will  be  im- 
practicable to  raise  either  of  'em  especially  if  there  is  no  Levy 
money  allow'd,  unless  the  soldiers  now  in  the  Garrison  should 
be  held  there  contrary  to  the  terms  of  my  Proclamation, 
which  I  presume  his  Majesty  does  not  design ;  For  though  the 
American  Soldiers  should  like  the  Colonel  in  whose  Regiment 
they  are  to  serve  never  so  well,  yet  they  have  a  more  immedi- 
ate regard  to  the  Captain  and  Subalterns,  in  whose  Company 
they  are  to  be  muster'd,  and  have  generally  so  great  an  aver- 
sion to  inlist  under  any  but  American  Officers  whom  they 
know  and  have  an  opinion  of ;  that  though  I  have  learn'd  to 
think  nothing  impossible  in  his  Majesty's  Service,  yet  if 
anything  is,  this  seems  to  be  so,  or  at  least  will  cost  much 
time  to  get  it  effected ;  and  in  the  mean  time  the  conse- 
quences may  be  very  prejudicial  to  his  Majesty's  Service, 
For  when  these  gentlemen  come  to  Louisbourg  with  their 
Commissions  they  will  have  their  Companies  to  raise  and 
not  be  able  (I  am  affrald)  to  raise  among  'em  all  lOO  men  out 
of  the  American  Troops  in  that  Garrison,  but  must  have 
their  men  to  seek  over  half  the  Continent.  In  the  mean 
time  the  American  Officers  will  be  extreamly  uneasy  at  their 
disappointment,  and  their  men  discontented  and  difficult  to 
be  kept  longer  in  the  Garrison,  and  it  will  be  impracticable 
to  get  other  American  Officers  and  Soldiers  to  relieve  'em  for 
the  present  'till  the  gentlemen  upon  the  Establishment  shall 
have  rais'd  their  Companies,  besides  the  tendency  it  may 
have  to  damp  the  spirit  of  the  Colonies  upon  any  future 
occasions  for  his  Majesty's  Service,  that  had  I  apprehended 
the  Officers  for  the  intended  American  regiments  would  have 
been  so  many  of  'em  appointed  from  home,  I  would  have 
taken  the  liberty  to  submit  it  to  your  Grace's  Consideration 

295 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

whether  it  might  not  have  been  more  adviseable  to  have  sent 
over  four  Regiments  from  England  if  that  would  have  been 
convenient  to  garrison  Loulsbourg  than  to  have  rais'd  two 
American  Regiments  according  to  the  present  scheme  of  doing 
it ;  And  though  the  Command  of  a  Regiment  is  what  is  ex- 
tremely acceptable  to  me,  I  should  have  rather  foregone  it  and 
waited  for  some  other  mark  of  his  Majesty's  Royal  favour 
even  less  acceptable  to  myself  than  undergo  the  concern  I  shall 
have  least  it  should  be  impracticable  to  raise  these  Regiments, 
and  his  Majesty's  service  suffer  by  it  in  the  manner  it  seems 
possible  to  me  it  may :  But  as  upon  raising  the  American 
Levies  for  the  late  Expedition  against  the  Spanish  Settle- 
ments in  the  West  Indies  I  observ'd  all  the  Captains  and 
other  Officers  except  the  first  Lieutenants  were  appointed  by 
the  several  Governours  out  of  the  Americans  upon  the  spot 
I  thought  it  probable  that  the  same  method  at  least  might 
have  been  pursu'd  now  upon  the  same  and  indeed  stronger 
reason  for  doing  it,  if  it  should  not  have  been  thought  proper 
to  appoint  the  field  Officers  out  of  the  Americans. 

I  have  taken  the  liberty  to  express  my  fears  to  your  Grace 
upon  this  occasion,  but  shall  not  in  the  least  slacken  my 
Endeavours  to  do  what  I  possibly  can  towards  raising  both 
regiments  when  the  Comissions  come  over  but  could  not  for- 
bear mentioning  the  great  difficulty  of  doing  it,  least  a  failure 
therein  should  be  afterwards  imputed  either  to  some  neglect, 
or  diminution  of  my  influence  with  the  people. 

I  find  my  Lord  it  is  surmis'd  in  some  of  my  Letters  that  the 
filling  up  of  so  many  Cornissions  may  probably  be  owing 
to  disadvantageous  representations  of  the  services  of  the 
land  Forces  and  particularly  of  the  Officers  made  by  the 
Gentlemen  of  the  Sea  concern'd  in  the  Expedition.  What 
ground  there  may  be  for  this  Surmise  I  don't  know,  but  hope 
it  is  a  mistake.  If  it  is  not  I  can't  forbear  saying  that  it  seems 
to  me  injurious  to  the  Land  Officers  and  an  imposition  on  the 
Ministry.  For  though  doubtless  some  of  the  Officers  rais'd  so 
suddenly  must  be  exceptionable  yet  there  are  many  among 
'em  who  have  done  his  Majesty  exceeding  good  Service  upon 
this  Occasion  at  the  Hazard  of  their  Lives  and  greatly  to  the 

296 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Prejudice  of  their  private  Fortunes,  and  are  deserving  of  his 
Royal  favour,  and  would  not  part  with  their  late  Conquest 
upon  any  extremity  of  an  Enemy  but  at  the  expence  of  their 
lives. 

.  For  my  own  part  it  has  been  a  point  with  me  to  men- 
tion the  share  which  his  Majesty's  Ships  have  had  in  the 
late  Conquest  upon  every  occasion  both  Publick  and  Private 
in  the  most  advantageous  manner.  It  was  for  his  Majesty's 
Honour,  and  I  esteem'd  it  my  Duty  to  do  so,  and  indeed  I 
was  instrumental  in  bringing  the  Ships  into  the  Service  as 
well  as  the  land  Forces  :  But  I  must  acknowledge  I  think 
there  will  be  too  much  reason  for  the  Colonies  to  think  it 
something  hard,  if  after  the  Gentlemen  of  the  Sea  have  been 
let  into  so  great  a  share  of  reputation  and  Wealth  (by  the 
late  immediate  Consequence  of  the  Conquest  by  Land)  at 
so  easy  a  rate  as  to  obtain  both  without  firing  a  shot  against 
the  Town  or  loosing  one  man  against  it,  they  should  en- 
deavour to  forestall  the  Colonies  of  all  share  of  favour  with 
their  Prince,  and  reputation  with  their  fellow  Subjects  (which 
must  depend  upon  the  Value  of  their  Services)  and  must 
attribute  everything  to  the  bare  appearance  of  the  Ships 
preparing  to  enter  the  Harbour,  which  is  a  Circumstance 
too,  that  I  find  after  this  Usage  of  the  Land  Forces  will 
be  disputed  with  'em ;  I  mean  whether  the  Enemy  really 
had  the  least  apprehension  or  dread  of  their  attempting 
to  enter  the  Harbour,  or  were  appriz'd  that  they  were  pre- 
paring to  do  so ;  But  I  have  troubled  your  Grace  more 
than  enough  about  this  and  am  extremely  sorry  I  have 
occasion  to  do  it. 

Some  time  ago  I  made  mention  of  a  strong  French  Fort 
call'd  Crown  point,  situated  at  the  end  of  the  lakeChamplean 
near  the  borders  of  the  Governments  of  New  York,  Connect- 
cut.  New  Hampshire  and  this  Province,  as  likely  to  prove 
a  place  of  Rendezvous  for  the  Enemy  to  form  any  Expedi- 
tion from,  or  to  retreat  to  after  executing  one.  From  thence 
a  body  of  Canada  French  and  Indians  have  lately  issu'd  and 
cut  off  a  Village  call'd  Saraghtoga  in  Albany  within  the  Gov- 
ernment of  New  York,  where  they  have  barbarously  de- 

297 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

stroy'd  and  carried  away  Captive  about  30  families  ;  It  is 
happy  that  just  before  this  Blow  Governour  Clinton  and  the 
neighbouring  Governments  had  reclaimed  the  Six  Nations 
from  going  over  to  the  French  Interest.  The  Comissioners 
from  my  Government  inform  me  that  at  the  late  Treaty 
with  these  Indians  in  Albany  they  would  have  engag'd  'em 
in  an  Expedition  immediately  against  Crown  point,  which 
might  have  prevented  the  late  blow  given  to  this  Village, 
but  that  the  New  York  Council  would  not  advise  Governour 
Clinton  to  it ;  but  I  find  by  my  Letters  from  him  now  that 
the  New  York  Government  have  thoughts  of  doing  it. 

Having  lately  procur'd  from  Fort  Major  Phillips  of  An- 
napolis Royal  the  late  Lieutenant  Governour  Armstrong's 
Original  Instrument  mention'd  in  my  late  State  of  the  Prov- 
ince of  Nova  Scotia  to  be  given  by  him  to  the  French  In- 
habitants of  that  Province,  by  virtue  of  which  and  of  an- 
other of  the  same  tenour  given  'em  by  him  in  1730,  they 
claim  an  Exemption  from  bearing  Arms  in  defence  of  his 
Majesty's  Government,  I  enclose  your  Grace  a  copy  of  it.  — 
Mr  Philipps  in  his  letter  inclosing  this  Instrument  to  me 
observes  that  the  "  Inhabitants  of  Nova  Scotia  at  the  first 
news  of  Louisbourg  being  surrend'red  were  in  great  Con- 
sternation and  at  Minas  in  particular  they  appear'd  in 
Tears   in  the  Publick  places,   where  nine  months   before 
they  had  assisted  in  singing  Te  Deum  on  a  false  report 
that  Annapolis  Royal  was  surrendered  to  Monsieur  Du- 
vivier."     He  goes  on  to  say  that  a  report  was  spread  there 
that  Monsieur  Duvivier  was  arriv'd  at  Canada  with  rigging 
for  two  Men  of  War,  and  the  Renomme  a  French  thirty  gun 
ship  with  two  Prizes  at  Quebec,  and  all  the  Nova  Scotia 
Priests  were  gone  to  Canada  for  Instructions,  and  give  out 
that  there  are  1000  Canadeans  at  Chignecto  waiting  ready 
for  another  attempt  against   his  Majesty's  Garrison. 

To  this  I  beg  leave  to  subjoin  that  it  seems  to  me  far 
from  being  improbable  that  the  French  will  attempt  the 
reduction  of  Nova  Scotia  early  in  the  Spring,  by  gaining 
which  they  will  have  a  fine  provision  Country  to  assemble 
8  or  10,000  fighting  men  and  all  the  tribes  of  Indians  ready 

298 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

to  join  In  an  attempt  against  Louisbourg  at  a  few  days 
warning  as  I  observ'd  to  your  Grace  in  a  late  Letter ;  But 
if  they  should  not  attempt  Louisbourg  they  would  irresist- 
ably  break  up  all  the  Eastern  Settlemts  of  this  Province 
and  I  doubt  not  the  whole  Province  of  New  Hampshire 
itself,  which  would  make  'em  masters  of  all  the  Mast  Country 
and  Naval  Stores  and  of  a  rich  soil  for  Corn  as  well  as  Cattle 
and  this  would  also  enable  'em  to  make  deep  impressions  on 
all  the  western  frontiers  of  this  Province,  New  York  and 
Connecticut,  and,  how  far  they  might  penetrate  is  not  cer- 
tain but  so  far  at  least  as  might  make  it  very  difficult  to  dis- 
lodge 'em  and  give  'em  such  an  hold  of  the  Continent  as  to 
make  'em  think  in  time  of  pushing  with  the  assistance  of  the 
Indians  for  the  Mastery  of  it,  which  is  richly  worth  con- 
tending for  with  all  their  might,  as  it  would  in  their  hands 
lay  the  surest  foundation  for  an  Universal  Monarchy  by 
Sea  and  Land  that  ever  a  people  had.  This  train  of  Conse- 
quences from  the  Enemies  being  Masters  of  Nova  Scotia 
may  seem  remote,  my  Lord,  but  they  are  not  impossible, 
and  it  may  be  very  difficult  for  the  French  to  regain  Louis- 
bourg at  least  without  being  Masters  of  Nova  Scotia,  and 
that  seems  under  the  present  Circumstances  of  the  Garrison 
where  no  recruits  are  yet  arriv'd  from  England  and  the 
Inhabitants  of  the  Country  surrounding  it  are  Enemies  in 
their  hearts  no  difficult  Acquisition,  and  to  be  made  with  a 
small  Train  of  Artillery  in  three  weeks  at  farthest.  I  would 
submit  it  to  your  Grace's  Consideration  whether  the  Gar- 
rison should  not  be  reinforc'd  as  soon  as  may  be  and  the 
Inhabitants  should  not  be  forthwith  put  upon  a  good  foot 
of  Subjection  and  fidelity. 

Thus  in  Obedience  to  your  Grace's  Direction  I  have 
troubled  you  with  my  whole  sentiments  concerning  the 
Province  of  Nova  Scotia,  which  as  I  can't  think  it  probable 
that  the  French  will  sleep  the  next  year  after  the  blow  we 
have  given  'em  at  Louisbourg  (which,  if  they  don't  recover 
it  soon,  by  retaking  Cape  Breton  or  getting  Nova  Scotia  will 
prove  their  Death  wound  in  North  America)  seems  to  be 
most  Hkely  to  be  attack'd  by  'em  of  any  place  in  these  parts, 

299 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

and   I   hope  your  Grace  will  excuse  my  repetition  of   the 
Danger  of  it. 

I  am  with  the  most  Dutiful!  regards 
My  Lord  Duke 
Your  Grace's  most  Obedt 
and  most  Devoted  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed : 

Boston.  Deer.  14,  1745, 
GovR  Shirley 
B  Jafiry  28 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  1 

Boston,  Deer  17,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  am  much  oblig'd  to  your  Excellency  for  your  kind  Wel- 
come of  me  home,  which  I  have  now  only  time  barely  to  ac- 
knowledge, the  General  Court,  and  my  Dispatches  for  three 
London  Vessells,  the  last  of  which  I  have  proms'd  shall  be 
dismissed  by  noon,  having  unavoidably  engross'd  my  whole 
time :  But  I  will  write  to  your  Excellency  most  fully,  and 
particularly  by  the  next  post ;  and  can  only  say  in  the  mean 
time ;  that  both  our  Governmts  have  much  depending,  and  we 
shall  I  think  have  our  hands  full  this  Winter. 
I  am  with  truth  and  Esteem 
Sir, 

Your  Excellency's  most 
obedient,  Humble 
Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy.  Govr.  Wentworth. 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Society,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
C,  p.  18. 

300 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH ' 

Boston,  Deer  31,  1745. 
Sir, 

I  am  to  ask  pardon  for  Inclosing  Mr  Warren's  and  Govr 
Clinton's  Letters  by  the  last  post  to  you,  without  one  line 
to  attend  'em  ;  which  was  owing  to  people's  crowding  In  upon 
me,  whom  I  could  not  putt  off,  when  Gerlsh  call'd  upon  me ; 
and  I  am  obllg'd  farther  to  ask  your  excuse  'till  the  next 
post,  by  which  I  will  endeavour  to  make  you  large  Amends  by 
a  very  full  answer  and  acct.  of  the  Situation  of  our  Affairs  at 
Loulsbourg,  with  my  sentiments  on  every-thing  very  freely ; 
and  It  Is  with  the  greatest  pleasure  that  I  shall  act  In  Conjunc- 
tion with  you  In  every-thIng  for  his  Majesty's  Service  as  we 
have  hitherto  done. 

I  have  some  Dispatches  of  very  great  Consequence  to  us, 
which  I  am  pushing  to  get  away  by  a  Cork  Vessell  this  Week, 
and  hinders  me  from  writing  at  large  now :  The  Contents 
you  shall  be  appriz'd  of  In  my  next. 

In  the  mican  time  I  can't  think  you  need  be  in  the  least 
Anxiety  for  giving  your  Consent  to  the  Money  bills,  without 
his  Majesty's  special  leave,  upon  so  extraordinary  an  Emer- 
gency for  his  Service ;  and  happily  attended  with  such 
Success  too.  I  hope  on  the  contrary  and  doubt  not  but  you 
will  have  your  just  and  due  Share  of  his  Majesty's  favour 
for  the  part  you  have  acted  on  this  Occasion,  so  much  to 
your  honour  and  his  Service. 

I  am  with  the  compliments  of  the  Season  (may  this  coming 
Year  prove  as  happy  to  us  in  our  political  affairs  as  the  last) 
to  yourself  and  family ;  with  very  great  regard  and  Esteem 
Sir, 

Your  Excellency's  most 
Obedient  Humble  Servt 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy.  Govr.  Wentworth. 

1  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Society,  Belknap  Manuscripts, 
61  C,  p.  18. 

301 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  ^ 

Boston,  Jany.  20,  1746.     [1745/6.] 
Sir, 

In  answer  to  your  Excy's  by  the  post,  The  Bills  I  have  as 
yet  drawn  are  stated  at  the  Exchange  of  £650  Old  Tenour 
for  £100  Sterl,  or  after  the  rate  of  550  per  Cent  advance ;  and 
are  sign'd  by  Mr  Warren  and  my  self :  But  then  I  must 
apprize  you  that  these  bills  are  drawn  for  Ordnance  and  other 
Warlike  Stores,  which  we  had  no  Directions  from  his  Majesty 
to  supply,  and  stand  singly  upon  the  foot  of  the  Service, 
and  it's  being  a  proper  Article  of  Charge  upon  the  Crown ; 
so  that  the  risque  of  these  bills  (which  you  will  observe  the 
Merchts  take  upon  themselves  and  indemnifye  Mr  Warren 
and  me  against)  may  be  deem'd  greater  than  that  of  those 
which  I  shall  draw  for  the  Cloathing  and  Arms  which  I  am 
directed  (as  also  the  other  Govrs.  are)  to  supply.  When  I  come 
to  draw  the  bills  for  the  Cloathing  I  shall  endeavour  to  raise 
the  Exchange  to  600  per  Cent  advance.  But  whether  I  shall 
be  able  to  do  it,  I  can't  say  :  You  shall  hear  from  me  as  soon 
as  it  is  settled,  which  may  be  this  Week ;  In  the  mean  time  I 
desire  your  Excy.  will  keep  what  I  have  last  say'd  to  your 
self :  I  think  600  per  Cent  advance  for  these  last  mention'd 
bills  is  the  equal  Exchange  between  the  Merchts  and  Gov- 
ernmt,  according  to  the  course  of  paymt  of  publick  bills. 

Govr.  Clinton  by  last  post  informs  me  that  the  Indians  and 

Southern  forces  (he  will  endeavour)  shall  be  ready  to  join  in 

the  Attempt  against  Crown  point;  But  I  have  no  Answer 

yet  from  Connecticutt ;  and  our  Motions  will  depend  much 

upon  their  resolves.^ 

I  am  with  great  truth  and  Esteem 

Sir 

Your  Excellency's  most 

Obedient,  Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy.  Govr,  Wentworth. 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
C,  p.  21. 

^  The  underlining  is  by  Wentworth. 

302  * 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  PEPPERRELLi  AND  PETER  WARREN '^ 
TO  WILLIAM   SHIRLEY 

Louisbourg,  Janry  28,  1746. 

Your  Excelly  on  your  departure  from  hence  was  so  well 
acquainted  with  the  state  of  this  garrison  that  we  have  only 
to  advise  you  the  sickness  which  you  left  among  us  has  con- 
tinued to  rage  to  such  a  degree  that  from  the  last  of  Nov.  to 
this  date  we  have  buried  561  men,  and  have  at  this  time 
1 100  sick.  We  flatter  ourselves  from  the  burials  of  three  or 
four  days  past  not  amounting  to  more  than  3 , 4,  and  5  of  a  day, 
when  before  were  generally  from  14  to  17,  that  the  distemper 
abates.  However,  it  has  reduced  us  to  less  than  a  thousand 
men  capable  of  doing  duty  in  the  garrison.  We  think  our- 
selves indispensably  obliged  by  the  trust  reposed  in  us  to 
lay  our  weakness  open  to  your  Excely  that  you  and  the  Leg- 
islature of  your  province  may  (with  the  same  laudable  zeal 
which  you  have  exerted  thro'  the  whole  of  an  expedition  that 
has  added  to  the  British  dominions  an  acquisition  of  ines- 
timable value)  take  the  most  effectual  measures  for  securing 
the  possession  of  it  against  any  attempt  of  the  enemy,  who 
may  probably  make  as  vigorous  a  push  as  possible  to  regain 
it,  and  that  before  the  troops  which  were  intended  by  his 

^  Printed :  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  442.  This  letter  is  in 
the  Pepperrell  Letter-Book  out  of  chronological  order,  and  Pep- 
perrell's  clerk  appears  to  have  substituted  the  New  Style  date  for 
the  year.  Shirley's  reply  is  dated  according  to  the  Old  Style  Mar. 
I,  1745,  see  p.  310  -post. 

^  Admiral  Sir  Peter  Warren  was  born  in  1703  and  died  in  Ireland 
in  July,  1752.  He  was  in  the  West  Indies  at  the  time  of  the 
Louisbourg  expedition,  having  been  placed  in  command  of  the 
squadron  sent  from  England  to  cooperate  with  Shirley.  As  a 
result  of  this  expedition  Captain  Warren  was  made  Governor 
of  the  city  after  its  capture,  was  raised  to  the  rank  of  Admiral  and 
was  also  knighted.  So  many  honors  aroused  the  jealousy  of  Pep- 
perrell, who  thought  the  command  of  the  city  at  least  should  have 
been  given  to  the  leader  of  the  land  forces.  Warren  was  uncle 
to  Sir  William  Johnson  of  New  York. 

Z°2, 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Majesty  can  arrive  here,  if  they  are  even  set  out  from  Gib- 
raltar. We  therefore  apprehend  it  necessary  as  all  human 
undertakings  are  liable  to  various  miscarriages,  to  guard 
against  the  many  which  those  troops  (of  which  we  have  not 
heard  a  syllable  since  you  left  us)  are  exposed  to  in  their  pass- 
age so  late  in  the  season  as  they  were  expected  to  embark  for 
this  place,  and  as  you  have  been  advis'd  that  it  is  his  Majesty's 
royal  intention  to  establish  two  regiments  of  the  Americans 
here,  for  their  encouragement  and  the  protection  of  this 
garrison,  it  will  be  necessary  as  those  troops  who  are  here  at 
present,  or  at  least  the  greatest  part  of  them,  are  in  hopes 
of  returning  home  upon  the  terms  promised  by  your  pro- 
clamation at  their  first  inlistment,  to  make  new  levies  to 
relieve  them,  if  even  the  regular  troops  from  Europe  should 
arrive  in  due  time,  for  if  after  that  we  should  pretend  to  keep 
them,  we  may  reasonably  expect  they  will  be  very  uneasy. 
Upon  the  whole  we  are  well  assured  we  need  not  use  any 
argument  to  induce  your  Excellency  to  pursue  all  the  means 
in  your  power,  both  with  your  own  governt.  by  your  authority 
and  influence,  and  by  the  latter  with  all  the  neighbouring 
ones,  to  whose  Governours  we  now  write  circular  letters 
upon  this  subject,^  that  may  be  most  conducive  to  the  se- 
curity of  a  conquest,  the  value  of  which  to  our  country  in 
general,  and  the  colonies  in  particular,  you  are  so  well  ac- 
quainted with,  which  was  no  doubt  the  motive  that  induced 
your  Excelly  to  take  so  much  pains  in  forming  and  carrying 
into  execution  the  plan  for  the  reduction  of  it  to  his  Majy's 
obedience,  which  has  been  so  happily  effected.  We  have  tho't 
it  necessary  to  send  an  express  home,  who  saild  the  23rd  inst, 
but  would  have  gone  the  i8th,  had  the  wind  permitted,  to 
apprise  his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  of  our  situation, 
as  we  do  by  this  your  Excelly.  If  we  should  not  be  disturbd 
by  the  French  in  the  spring  we  presume  the  1st  thing  proper 
to  undertake  will  be  the  getting  the  French  from  the  isld  of 

^  A  copy  of  this  circular  letter  in  four  pages  is  in  the  Pepperrell 
Letter  Book,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  71  C,  p.  66.  It  is  dated  Jan.  25, 
1745,  and  copies  were  sent  to  the  Governors  of  all  colonies  as  far 
south  as  Virginia. 

304 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

St  Johns,  if  they  don't  prevent  us  by  going  to  Canada,  and 
transporting  them  and  those  that  remain  on  this  island  to 
France,  agreable  to  the  capitulation,  for  we  are  of  opinion 
none  of  them  are  to  be  trusted.  In  order  to  perform  this 
service  we  shall  want  several  small  vessels,  some  of  them 
armd,  and  we  believe  Capt.  Tyng's  ship  will  be  very  necessary  ; 
of  this  your  Excelly  will  be  a  good  judge.  We  are  greatly 
distress'd  for  firewood  and  necessary  refreshmts  for  the  sick. 
We  hope  quantities  of  fresh  provisions  will  be  sent  when 
vessels  can  pass,  for  no  expence  should  be  put  in  competition 
with  that  of  saving  the  lives  of  his  Majesty's  subjects  who 
have  done  so  much  service.  Medicines,  the  doctors  say, 
are  much  wanted,  and  we  fear  the  loss  of  many  in  the  ship 
Rousby,  which  was  wreck'd  and  beat  to  pieces  the  27th  last 
month  within  two  leagues  of  this  place,  and  out  of  24  every 
soul  perish'd,  except  three  of  the  common  saylors.  Among 
the  unfortunate  was  Col.  Bradstreet's  brother,  and  Doer. 
Eliot  with  his  son,  who  it  seems  was  formerly  surgeon  at 
Canso,  and  was  appointed  to  this  garrison  or  hospital,  so 
that  tis  probable  his  stock  of  drugs  are  lost  with  him.  We 
can't  learn  for  certain  what  this  ship  was  laden  with,  but  we 
believe  provision.  However,  we  have  apprised  the  Duke  of 
Newcastle  and  the  Admiralty  of  the  loss  of  this  ship,  who 
will  be  the  best  judges  how  far  this  garrison  will  be  affected 
by  it,  and  how  to  redress  it.  Nor  can  we  learn  from  the 
people  that  were  saved  more  than  that  she  saild  from  Eng- 
land with  about  24  sail,  five  or  six  of  them  storeships  for  this 
garrison,  under  convoy  of  the  Kinsale,  with  whom  they  parted 
in  a  gale  of  wind  near  the  banks  of  Newfoundland  about  3 
weeks  before  their  misfortune.  Where  they  are  is  uncer- 
tain, but  we  hope  some  of  them  may  be  got  to  Boston,  and 
that  you  will  hurry  them  down  to  us.  Mr  Warren  writes  to 
the  Captain  of  the  convoy,  if  there,  to  join  him  here  with  the 
storeships  as  soon  as  possible.  We  have  had  pretty  severe 
weather  since  the  middle  of  December,  and  some  ice,  but 
not  to  hinder  vessels  from  getting  into  the  harbour.  We  beg 
your  Excelly  will  hurry  down  the  materials  for  the  barracks 
which  we  wrote  for  to  Messrs  Apthorp  and  Sparhawk,  as  they 
VOL.  I  —  X  305 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

will  be  much  wanted  for  the  reception  of  the  regular  troops 
should  they  arrive,  and  indeed  for  those  you  and  the  rest  of 
the  Colonies  may  send  us.  Nothing  more  occurs  to  us  at 
present,  proper  for  your  information.  When  any  does  we 
sha'n't  fail  to  endeavour  to  give  you  the  earliest  advice, 
being  with  great  regard. 

Sir,  Your  Excellys  most  obedt.  hum.  servts. 

P.  w.      w.  p. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  ^ 

Boston,  Jany  30,  1746 

Sir, 

I  take  the  Opportunity  by  this  Conveyance  to  let  you 
know  that  when  I  wrote  my  last  by  the  post,  I  had  forgot  the 
Inclosed  Act  of  Assembly,  which  being  expir'd  is  now  reviving. 
You  will  perceive  it  is  general  and  extends  to  all  soldiers  in 
his  Majesty's  service,  and  will  doubtless  reach  our  case ;  and 
I  shall  not  scruple  to  give  the  officers  appointed  by  me  a  Com- 
mission to  hold  Courts  Martial  ^  upon  this  necessary  Occasion. 
I  inclose  your  Excy.  a  Copy  of  my  Commission  to  General 
Pepperill  upon  the  late  Expedition,  which  if  you  like  it  may 
serve  mutatis  mutandis  for  the  precedent  of  drawing  one 
now. 

Upon  the  whole,  if  your  Assembly  will  follow  the  Example 
of  mine,  I  think  such  an  Act  will  do ;  and,  as  for  my  self  I 
sha'n't  scruple  to  proceed  upon  the  act  of  this  government. 

Observe,  tho'  the  Officers  appointed  by  us  have  not  yet 
receiv'd  Commissions  from  the  Crown,  yet  they  are  actually 
in  the  King's  pay  and  Service  from  the  date  of  their  beating 
Orders,  and  have  receiv'd  Commissions  from  us.  And  all 
Circumstances  consider'd,  doubtless  I  think,  the  Necessity 
of  the  Service  will  bear  us  out  in  giving  a  Commission  for 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Society,  Belknap  Manuscripts, 
61   C,   p.   22. 

*  The  underlining  is  by  Wentworth. 

306 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

holding  Courts  martial,  when  the  Penalties  are  inflicted  by 
the  Act  of  the  Legislature. 

I  am  with  great  respect 
Sir 

Your  Excellency's  most 
Obedient,  Humble  Servt 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy  Govr  Wentworth. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH^ 

Boston,  Febry  9th,  1745. 
Sir, 

Four  days  ago  I  wrote  to  your  Excellency  at  large  by 
Lieutent  Auchmuty,  desiring  your  leave  for  him  to  beat  his 
drums  for  raising  voluntiers  for  my  regiment  within  your 
government,  which  I  hope  you  have  before  now  received.  I 
now  trouble  you  with  the  same  request  in  favour  of  Mr  Byfield 
Lyde,  and  shall  take  your  good  offices  done  him  as  an  obliga- 
tion to  myself.  As  your  Excellency  and  myself  are  under  the 
same  circumstances  with  respect  to  Mr  Belcher,^  I  am  in 
hopes  that  your  generosity  of  temper  will  not  discourage 
Mr.  Lyde,  who  is  the  best  of  the  family  and  reduc'd  very 
much  in  circumstances,  in  his  pursuit  of  a  commission  from 
me  (which  I  strain  a  point  to  give  him)  by  procuring  me  some 
men.  If  it  would  interfere  wth  your  good  offices  to  Captn. 
Mason  (who  is  sure  of  his  commission,  be  his  success  in 
recruiting  what  it  will),  I  would  not  trouble  you  with  this 
request.  But  since  the  arrival  of  my  own  and  Sir  William 
Pepperell's  commissions  I  have  given  permission  to  the 
recruiting  officer  of  Genl.  Dalziel's  regiment  in  the  Leeward 

^Printed:  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  445.  A  request  for  per- 
mission to  recruit  in  Connecticut  was  made  of  Governor  Law  and 
Lieutenant-Governor  Wolcott.  See  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  13, 
180,  182. 

2  A  reference  to  the  fact  that  Shirley  and  Wentworth  each  took 
a  province  away  from  Belcher  in  1741. 

307 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Islands  to  beat  up  for  recruits  here,  though  I  question  whether 
he  has  the  King's  special  order  for  doing  it,  as  Sir  William 
and  I  have  for  raising  them  in  the  Northern  Colonies,  and  it 
is  an  unlucky  time  for  other  officers  to  be  recruiting  here.  I 
inclose  you  the  copy  of  a  paragraph  of  a  letter  from  Mr 
Cranston  of  Newport  to  TVIr  Caswell  of  this  place,  which  I 
hope  may  be  true,  especially  in  the  first  article  as  to  the  main 
substance  of  it.  I  am,  in  haste,  with  great  esteem.  Sir, 
Your  Excellency's  most  Obedient,  Humble  servt. 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excll.  Govr  Wentworth. 


WILLIAM   PEPPERRELL  TO   WILLIAM    SHIRLEY. 

[Extracts  ^] 

Louisbourg,  Fabry  20th,  1745. 
Sir, 

My  last  to  your  Excelly  was  of  the  8th  instant,  since 
which  I  am  not  favoured  with  a  line  from  you.  I  should 
have  been  glad  to  have  known  what  directions  are  come  con- 
cerning the  two  American  regiments^  proposed  to  be  raised 
for  this  place,  but  as  I  have  no  letters  from  any  of  the  officers 
that  are  arrived  at  Boston,  I  remain  intirely  in  the  dark  how 
I  am  to  proceed.  'Tis  said  here  that  some  blank  com- 
missions sent  from  England  are  arrived  in  Boston,  I  should 
be  glad  to  know  if  any  of  them  are  to  be  at  my  disposal,  as 
I  am  since  my  last  to  your  Excelly  informd  by  some  of  the 
officers  here  that  if  they  were  assured  of  being  establish'd 
only  as  subaltans  they  could  inlist  a  number  of  men  here. 
I  am  informed  that  Mr  Bastide  has  a  letter  from  your  Lieut. 
Colonel  to  proceed  in  such  a  method,  but  what  he  has  done 

1  Printed  in  full :    6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  447. 

2  These  regiments  are  the  ones  referred  to  by  Shirley  in  his  letter 
of  Oct.  2,  ante,  p.  271.  Shirley  had  promised  to  give  Byfield  Lyde 
the  first  vacancy  as  captain  in  his  regiment  If  Pepperrell  would 
make  the  same  promise  and  this  agreement  had  been  communi- 
cated to  Pepperrell  by  Charles  Chauncy  in  a  letter  of  Feb.  14th. 

30S 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

thereon  I  can't  say,  I  having  been  III  this  three  weeks,  and 
have  not  seen  him. 

I  hope  the  sickness  Is  dayly  abating,  the  funerals  being 
considerably  decreasd  lately.  Among  those  lately  dead 
are  the  Revd,  Mr  Spear,  one  of  the  chaplains  sent  by  the 
Massachusetts,  and  the  Revd.  Mr  Backus,  a  chaplain  sent 
from  Connecticut,  and  this  day  died  Col.  Shubael  Gorham. 

Though  all  that  engaged  on  the  expedition  against  this  place 
have  merited  much,  I  think  those  have  exceeded  who  have 
tarried  here  through  the  winter  at  the  risque  of  their  lives  from 
a  terrible  pestilence,  and  in  hazard  of  starving  with  cold  for 
want  of  fuel,  as  well  as  enduring  many  other  hardships 
which  those  avoided  who  returnd  to  New  England. 


I  impatiently  wait  the  favour  of  a  line  from  your  Excely, 
and  am 

Your  most  obedt.  hum.  servt. 

W.  P.i 


^  In  regard  to  enlisting  men  Pepperrell  wrote  to  Shirley  further 
on  Feb.  28  :  — 

Yesterday  Mr  Bastlde  by  letter  communicated  to  me  a  para- 
graph of  a  letter  from  Col.  Ellison  to  him,  which  he  received  near  a 
fortnight  ago,  by  Capt.  Gould,  wherein  Col.  Ellison  mentions  that 
you  have  wrote  at  large  to  me  and  Mr  Waldo  on  the  head  of  raising 
men  out  of  the  troops  here  for  the  two  American  regiments,  and 
though  those  letters  are  not  come  to  hand  Mr  Bastlde  has  desired  my 
leave  to  raise  men  accordingly.  Upon  which  I  took  the  advice  of  the 
Council  of  War  this  morning,  who  are  of  opinion  that  as  your  letters 
may  be  hourly  expected  in  which  I  am  to  have  directions  at  large  on 
that  head,  it  is  best  to  suspend  any  proceedings  of  that  kind  for 
the  present,  which  advice  I  have  inform'd  Mr  Bastide  of,  and  shall 
take  care  that  it  be  observed  by  the  other  officers  here,  Col.  Brad- 
street  having  engaged  several  to  inlist  with  him  when  the  corps 
In  which  they  now  serve  shall  be  disbanded.  If  your  Excelly  should 
think  fit  that  our  officers  should  raise  what  men  they  respectively 
can  here,  and  also  in  New  England,  for  the  joint  benefit  of  the  two 
regiments  I  shall  act  accordingly  when  I  have  your  opinion  and 
directions  which  I  shall  always  endeavour  to  follow. 


309 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL  ^ 

Boston,  March  ist,  1745. 
Sir, 

Yesterday  I  was  favour'd  with  yours  and  Mr  Warren's  joint 
Letter  and  his  Separate  one  of  28th  ^  and  29th  of  January, 
and  am  much  Concern'd  at  your  Melancholy  Account  of  the 
late  Mortality  and  present  Sickness  in  the  Garrison ;  I  pray 
God  to  put  an  End  to  both.  Nothing  has,  or  shall  be  wanting 
in  me  to  press  upon  the  Assembly  in  this  Province,  and  the 
Neighbouring  Governments  the  Necessity  of  their  Providing 
Recruits  to  repair  your  great  Loss,  relieve  the  Soldiers 
now  in  the  Garrison,  and  guard  against  all  unforeseen  Acci- 
dents which  may  happen  to  the  Gibraltar  Transports  with 
the  Troops  in  their  Passage ;  Seven  of  which  I  have  the 
Pleasure  to  inform  you  I  have  a  Certain  Account  by  one  of 
their  Pilots,  just  come  from  Virginia,  are  arriv'd  safe  there 
under  Convoy  of  the  Dover  and  Torrington,  and  that  the 
Troops  were  in  good  health  and  Spirits  only  twelve  of  'em 
having  dy'd  in  their  Passage  :  These  Seven  with  that  arriv'd 
at  New  York  make  up  the  whole  of  the  Gibraltar  Trans- 
ports ;  The  Kinsale  I  hear  of  a  Certainty  is  arriv'd  at  St  Kitts 
but  without  any  of  her  Convoy,  and  I  have  had  no  advice 
of  the  Arrival  of  either  of  the  Ordnance  Store  Ships  (for 
which  I  shall  be  in  pain)  nor  of  any  other  of  the  Transports 
bound  for  Louisbourg  except  those  mention'd  in  my  last 
to  you  and  Mr  Warren  by  Bennet  and  Stinson. 

The  Materials  for  the  Barracks  with  fresh  Provisions, 
Bedding  and  the  other  things  mention'd  in  yours  to  be  ex- 
pected by  you  and  Mr  Warren  from  Messs,  Apthorp  and 
Sparrhawk,  my  Son  informs  me,  are  all  Sent;  As  there  is 
no  List  of  the  Druggs  and  Medicines  wanted  for  the  Sick,  it 
will  I  am  affraid  be  impracticable  to  furnish  you  with  more 
than  what  may  be  Sent  by  Bennett,  Stinson  or  the  other 
Transports  for  your  Garrison. 

^  Original,    L.    S.,     Mass.    Hist.    Soc,    Belknap  Manuscripts, 

61   C,   p.  44.  ^  Ante,  p.  303. 

310 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

I  am  intirely  of  your  Opinion  with  regard  to  the  transport- 
ing of  the  French  from  St  John's  Island  the  ensuing  Spring 
and  shall  endeavour  to  furnish  you  with  small  Vessells  for  that 
Purpose  andTyng  shall  assist  in  that  and  every  other  branch 
of  his  Majesty's  Service  in  my  Power  to  employ  him  with 
the  Massachusetts  Guard  Ship. 

I  am  sorry  to  find  such  a  general  Disinclination  in  the  New 
England  Soldiers  within  the  Garrison  to  enlist  into  either 
Your's  or  my  Regiment,  since  we  must  very  much  depend  on 
raising  'em  in  time,  as  Govr.  Wentworth  writes  me  Word  in 
Answer  to  my  Letter  upon  the  Subject  of  raising  Recruits  to 
relieve  their  Countrymen  in  May,  that  he  has  not  a  Prospect 
of  raising  ten  men  within  his  governmt  for  that  Service,  and 
Govr.  Clinton  informs  me  that  tho'  he  has  been  extravagant  In 
offering  a  Bounty  upon  that  Account,  yet  not  a  Man  had 
enlisted  within  his  whole  Government :  Pray  God  Send  the 
Gibraltar  Troops  well  to  you,  and  defend  'em  against  the 
devouring  Distemper's  Contagion  upon  their  Arrival,  and  that 
You  and  I  may  Succeed  in  our  Levies  upon  this  Continent,  of 
which  I  begin  to  have  a  something  better  Opinion  than  I  had 
at  first,  and  am  not  without  hopes  that  we  may.^ 

Mrs  Shirley  joins  with  me  and  Judy  and  the  rest  of  my 
family  in  their  Complimts  to  you.  I  shall  receive  all  your  Com- 
mands with  the  utmost  Pleasure  and  am  with  very  great 
regard 

Sir 

Your  Most  Obedient  Humble 
Servant. 

W.  Shirley. 
Sir  William  Pepperrell  Baronett. 

^  See  Pepperrell's  answer  to  this  letter,  on  p.  312  post,  of  date 
Mar.  20. 


3" 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL  TO    WILLIAM    SHIRLEY^ 

Louisbourg,  March  20th,  1745. 
Sir, 

Inclosed  is  a  copy  of  my  last  to  your  Excelly,  since  which  I 
am  favoured  with  yours  of  the  1st  of  March,  being  the  only 
line  I  have  reed  from  you  since  your  departure  from  hence ; 
Bennet  and  Stinson  by  whom  you  mention  to  have  wrote  me 
being  not  yet  arrived.  I  think  it  very  happy  that  the  troops 
from  Gibraltar  are  arrived  in  so  good  order  at  Virginia,  and 
hope  they  will  get  safe  here  in  good  season,  and  escape  the 
contagion  that  has  prevaild  so  much  here,  but  through  God's 
mercy  is  now  greatly  abated  and  most  of  the  sick  are  recover- 
ing. I  reed  at  the  same  time  with  your  Excellcy's  a  letter  from 
Col.  Ryan  in  which  was  inclosed  his  Majesty's  orders  to  me  for 
raising  a  regiment  but  I  have  no  acct  what  commissions  I  have 
to  dispose  of,  which  is  a  great  disadvantage.  However  after 
having  consulted  with  Brigr.  Waldo  and  Capt.  Bastide  what 
terms  of  inlistment  were  best  to  agree  upon,  we  proceeded 
to  make  tryal  for  both  regiments  in  which  we  have  succeeded 
beyond  expectation,  having  already  inlisted  above  three 
hund'd  men,  which  gives  me  some  encouragement,  but  I  fear 
the  levies  will  go  on  slowly  in  New  England  as  so  many  of  the 
officers  are  strangers.  I  have  thought  of  sending  up  some 
officers  to  assist  therein,  there  being  some  here  that,  I  am 
persuaded,  if  I  could  insure  them  a  Capt's  commission  could 
raise  a  company  in  a  few  days.     We  have  reed  from  Messrs. 

^  This  letter  Is  printed  in  full  In  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  10,  467. 
Drafts  of  Newcastle's  letters  of  Mar.  14  to  the  Governors  of  the 
Northern  Colonies  and  to  Shirley  are  In  C.  O.  5,  45,  pp.  215  and 
217.  Here  are  given  the  regiments  to  be  sent  to  Louisbourg  and 
directions  for  a  conference  between  Shirley  and  Warren  as  to  the 
practicability  of  an  attack  upon  the  French  settlements.  Shirley 
was  Informed  of  the  appointment  of  Commodore  Charles  Knowles 
to  be  Governor  of  Louisbourg  and  all  the  governors  were  called 
upon  to  exert  themselves  to  the  utmost  to  secure  as  many  men 
and  as  large  appropriation,  from  their  assemblies  as  possible.  See 
Newcastle  to  Shirley,  Apr.  9,  post,  pp.  319-321  notes. 

312 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Apthorj.  and  Sparhawk  part  of  the  materials  for  the  new 
barracks  which  we  shall  forward  the  building  of  with  all  pos- 
sible dispatch,  as  we  find  they  will  be  absolutely  necessary  for 
the  accommodation  of  so  great  a  number  of  troops  as  are 
happily  destind  for  the  protection  of  this  place.  I  am  glad 
your  Excelly  joins  in  opinion  with  Mr  Warren  and  myself 
that  the  French  should  be  removed  from  St  Johns  as  soon  as 
possible,  which  hope  will  be  effected  accordingly,  and  we  are 
much  obliged  to  you  for  the  offers  of  assistance  therein. 
We  have  heard  nothing  lately  of  any  of  the  store  ships  ex- 
pected here,  but  hope  they  are  safe.  There  are  such  large 
quantities  of  ice  floating  on  this  coast  that  they  may  have 
been  obliged  to  put  away,  if  they  have  lately  attempted  to  gain 
this  port,  and  I  wish  nothing  more  may  have  happened  to 
the  missing  vessells  from  New  England.  I  hope  the  Kinsale 
will  soon  be  here,  on  whose  arrival  I  shall  think  of  returning 
to  New  England  as  soon  as  possible.  I  now  inclose  to  your 
Excelly  an  acct  of  the  distribution  of  the  fresh  provisions 
sent  by  the  Province  for  the  sick  in  which  I  have  endeavourd 
that  all  possible  equity  should  be  used,  and  hope  it  will  be 
satisfactory.  I  am  extremely  obliged  to  your  lady  and  good 
family  for  their  complements,  to  wait  on  whom  in  N.  E.  will 
be  no  small  part  of  my  pleasure  in  returning. 

I  am,  your  Excellcy's  &c. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  PEPPERRELLi 

Boston,  April  ist,  1746. 
Sir, 

I  think  my  self  bound  in  friendship  to  advise  you  to 
inform  yourself  of  the  State  of  your  Regiment  In  as  particular 
a  manner  as  you  can,  from  Major  Mercer,  in  whom  I  am 
perswaded  you  may  safely  confide,  as  a  gentleman  of  great 
truth   and   honour.     I   should   not  have   mention'd   this   in 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Pepperell  Manuscripts, 
71  B,  p.  133. 

313 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

so  particular  a  manner,  if  I  did  not  think  it  would  be  much 
for  your  Service,  and  necessary  for  you  to  do. 

He  will  inform  you,  as  far  as  you  shall  think  fit  to  inquire, 
of  Lieutent  Sattie's  Affair. 

Having  mention'd  my  Sentiments  of  Major  Mercer  to  you 
before,  I  need  not  say  any  thing  farther  concerning  him  than 
what  I  have  above. 

I  am  with  much  truth  and  Esteem 
Sir, 

Your  faithfuU 

Humble  Servant. 

W.  Shirley. 
Sir  Wm.  Pepperell  Baront. 

WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL  TO  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY ^ 

Louisbourg,  April  6th,  1746. 
Sir, 

Inclosed  is  a  copy  of  my  last  to  your  Excelly  by  Capt. 
Shreves,  since  which  I  am  favourd  with  yours  of  Janry  15th 
and  Febry  i6th,  and  carefully  observe  the  contents.  Am 
much  pleased  to  find  that  what  I  have  mentiond  in  my  late 
letters  to  your  Excellcy,  on  the  head  of  inlisting  jointly 
here  and  in  N.  E.  for  the  two  new  regiments  is  agreable 
to  you,  and  am  greatly  obliged  to  you  for  the  readiness 
you  express  equally  to  promote  the  service  of  both,  in  which 
I  shall  heartily  join  with  you,  and  I  intirely  approve  of 
the  measures  you  have  taken  and  propose  to  take  for  that 
purpose.  The  advantage  which  your  Excellency  observes 
will  accrue  by  inlisting  men  on  the  spot  here  is  what  I 
have  had  in  my  mind,  and  I  have  accordingly  done  all 
in  my  power  consistent  with  justice  and  honour  to  promote 
such  inlistment,  and  I  must  confess  our  success  therein  has 
been  much  beyond  my  expectations,  and  I'm  persuaded  our 
having  appeared  to  inlist  here  for  seperate  interests  has  been 
an  advantage  by  stimulating  the  officers  employed  therein 
to  outvie  each  other  in  success. 

^  Printed :  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll,  10,  473. 

314 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

I  am  under  no  apprehensions  of  any  of  the  officers  of  the 
Gibraltar  regiments  getting  any  recruits  here ;  however, 
shall  endeavour  to  secure  all  that  will  inlist  here  before  their 
arrival.  I  very  much  fear  that  young  officers  coming  here 
at  present  will  be  of  ill  consequence,  as  the  resentment  of  the 
officers  now  here  at  their  disappointment  and  ill  usage  (as 
they  apprehend  it)  discovers  itself  more  and  more.  If  they 
come  I  shall  endeavour  to  take  and  give  all  possible  pre- 
caution in  the  affair;  and  I'm  persuaded  Mr  Warren  will  do 
It  likewise,  and  I  beg  your  Excellcy  will  confer  with  Col.  Ryan 
upon  it,  and  let  them  be  sent  or  delay'd  as  upon  the  whole 
you  shall  think  most  proper. 

What  you  mention  of  the  necessity  of  allowing  the  soldiers 
provisions  as  at  Gibraltar,  I  think  a  matter  of  great  conse- 
quence, and  If  not  successfully  solicited  will  be  of  very  111 
consequence  on  the  minds  of  those  that  shall  inlist  now, 
and  prevent  filling  up  future  vacancies.  I  took  care  when 
the  raising  of  the  American  regiments  was  first  proposed 
to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  to  mention  it  particularly,  and 
Mr.  Warren  did  the  same.  I  hope  considerable  part  of  the 
expence  of  transporting  the  levies  raisd  in  the  Colonies  will 
be  saved  by  the  assistance  of  the  government's  vessells, 
but  If  we  are  allow'd  but  two  guineas  for  each  man  we 
must  be  considerable  sufferers ;  but  upon  the  whole  I  will 
endeavour  to  follow  your  Excellcy's  advice,  not  to  think  of 
the  difficulties  yet  to  be  encounterd  In  this  affair,  but  in 
order  to  strengthen  my  resolution  to  surmount  them  if 
possible,  I  shall  write  to  Col.  Ryan  to  consult  with  you  on 
the  necessary  points,  and  especially  on  the  head  of  enlisting 
jointly,  which  I  have  already  mentlon'd  to  him.  As  Brigr. 
Waldo  will  doubtless  give  your  Excellency  a  particular  acct. 
relating  to  the  inllstment  here,  I  beg  leave  to  refer  you  to 
his  letters. 

I  am  sensible  of  the  necessity  of  what  your  Excellency 
mentions  of  retaining  the  chief  of  the  troops  now  here  till 
the  garrison  Is  otherways  effectually  supported,  and  I  wish 
I  may  not  be  obliged  to  tarry  here  longer  myself  than  I 
expected  for  that  reason ;   but  I  am  intlrely  of  opinion  with 

315 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

you   that  the  dismission  of  some  prudently  managed  will 
have  a  good  effect  on  the  remainder. 

ilf  ^  4i  *  *  ^  4: 

I  am  your  Excellcy's  etc. 

W.  P. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH^ 

Boston,  Aprill  23,  1746. 
Sir, 

The  Bearer  Mr.  Burton  waits  upon  you  for  leave  to  beat  up 
for  Voluntiers  to  enlist  in  my  Regiment  within  your  Excel- 
lency's Governmt.^ 

I  congratulate  you  upon  our  Good  news  from  Great 
Britain  concerning  the  Dispersion  of  the  Rebels,^  the  passing 
by  of  the  Gibraltar  Troops  for  Louisbourg  on  George's  Banks, 
and  the  prospect  of  Admiral  Townsend's  Squadron  being 
soon  there. 

I  am  greatly  oblig'd  to  your  Excelly.  for  all  favours  shown 
Mr.  Auchmuty  and  am  with  great  truth 
Sir, 

Your  Excy's  most 

Obedt,  Humble  Servt 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy.  Govr.  Wentworth. 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts, 
61  C,  p.  55. 

^  The  request  made  in  behalf  of  Lieutenant  Burton  in  this 
letter  had  been  made  in  behalf  of  Lieutenant  James  Auchmuty 
on  Feb.  5  and  for  Byfield  Lyde  on  Feb.  9,  See  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc. 
Coll.  10,  445  and  ante,  p.  307. 

^  The  reference  is  to  the  events  leading  up  to  the  defeat  of  Charles 
Edward  Stuart  at  Culloden  on  Apr.  16. 


316 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  PEPPERRELL  AND  PETER  WARREN 
TO  WILLIAM   SHIRLEY^ 

Louisbourg,  May  6,  1746. 
Sir, 

The  weak  condition  of  this  garrison  by  sickness  put 
us  under  the  necessity  of  applying  to  your  Excellcy  by  our 
joint  letter  of  25th  of  Janry  ^  last  for  a  reinforcement  as 
early  as  possible  this  spring,  lest  we  should  be  disappointed 
in  the  troops  intended  for  our  relief  from  Gibraltar,  but  as 
they  happily  arrived  here  the  21st  of  last  month  and  as 
the  sickness  is  greatly  abated  in  the  garrison,  we  flatter 
ourselves  that  if  the  colonies  (who  are  as  well  as  our  mother 
country  greatly  interested  in  the  safety  and  prosperity  of 
this  acquisition)  will  forward  the  raising  and  transporting 
levies,  so  as  to  keep  the  four  regiments  appointed  for  the 
protection  of  this  garrison  compleat,  we  shall  have  no  further 
occasion  to  put  them  to  any  trouble  or  expence  for  the 
defence  of  this  conquest.  But  as  we  find  that  the  two 
Gibraltar  regiments  do  not  consist  of  above  1200  men,  officers 
and  all,  including  two  companies  and  a  quarter  yet  expected 
in  the  transport  from  New  York,  and  that  we  sha'n't  have 
more  than  400  men  belonging  to  the  two  American  regiments 
who  have  inlisted  here,  and  including  the  recruits  sent  from 
New  England,  which  makes  but  1600  in  the  whole,  we  appre- 
hend it  will  not  be  prudent,  at  least  for  some  time,  to  weaken 
the  garrison  by  a  strict  complyance  with  your  Excellcy's  and 
our  promise  to  let  all  the  American  troops  go  home,  but  to  do 
it  by  degrees  as  recruits  arrive,  and  by  that  means  keep  near 
as  many  here  as  the  four  regiments,  if  compleat,  would 
consist  of.  But  if  Admiral  Townsend  or  any  squadron  of 
his  Majesty's  ships  should  arrive  we  think  we  need  not  keep  so 
many.  However,  we  hope  the  levies  will  go  on  well  in  all  the 
colonies  that  we  may  soon  have  it  in  our  power  to  keep  our 

^Printed:    6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.   10,  475. 
2  See  letter  of  Jan.  28,  ante,  p.  303.     The  letter  of  Jan.  25  was  a 
general  letter  to  other  governors,  and  is  referred  to  in  note  on  p.  304. 

317 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

faith  with  the  old  troops.  We  find  it  extremely  difficult 
to  get  quarters  for  the  new  officers  and  troops,  tho'  we  have 
converted  the  hospital  into  a  barrack  which  makes  a  very  good 
one.  We  are  with  the  advice  of  the  Council  going  to  send  two 
armd  vessels  to  the  island  of  St.  Johns  to  bring  some  of  the 
deputies  of  that  island  here,  and  to  settle  measures  with  the 
inhabitants  for  their  evacuating  it  agreable  to  the  terms  of  the 
capitulation,  with  which  if  they  comply  we  hope  when  these 
vessels  return  those  you  intend  us  from  Boston  will  be  here 
ready  to  go  for  them  and  their  effects,  or  upon  a  concom- 
pliance  [noncompliance  .^],  to  act  in  an  hostile  manner,  and 
if  possible  to  force  them  into  it  and  destroy  their  houses  and 
settlements.  Neither  the  Kinsale  nor  any  of  her  convoy  are 
yet  arrived,  except  the  Eliza  and  Sarah,  victuallers,  who 
came  some  time  ago  from  New  York,  and  is  gone  to  Maryland. 
Capt.  Rous  is  very  much  wanted  here,  and  materials  of  all 
kinds  for  building  and  repairing  quarters  for  the  troops. 

We  have  sent  up  by  the  Shirley  Galley  about  120  of  the  old 
troops,  about  30  of  which  are  such  whose  health  requird  their 
change  of  air,  and  the  others  such  whose  necessities  most 
required  their  dismission,  and  we  shall  continue  to  do  the 
same  by  every  opportunity  as  the  arrival  of  the  levies  for 
the  new  regiments  and  the  other  circumstances  of  the  gar- 
rison will  admit  of.     We  are,  with  great  regard, 

Your  Excellcy's,  &c. 

W.  P.  P.  W.i 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH^ 

Q  Boston,  May  27th,  1746. 

oIR, 

1  receiv'd  the  inclos'd  for  your  Excellency  together  with 

^  This  is  Warren's  last  letter  to  Shirley  as  Commander  of  the 
naval  forces  at  Louisbourg.  On  May  24  Isaac  Townsend  wrote 
Shirley  that  he  had  succeeded  to  the  command  and  would  gladly 
begin  a  correspondence  with  him.  (Adm.  Sec,  Ins.  Letters,  p. 
480.) 

2  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
C,  p.  56. 

318  ' 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SPIIRLEY 

Packets  (I  suppose  of  the  same  general  Import)^  for  all  the 
Governours  upon  the  Continent  as  Southward  as  Virginia 
Inclusive,  last  night  by  his  Majesty's  Sloop  Hinchenbrook  in 
46  days  from  England ;  and  shall  say  no  more  to  your 
Excellency  at  present  upon  this  Occasion  than  that  I  should 
be  glad  to  know  your  Sentiments  as  to  the  number  of  Men 
necessary  to  enter  the  Enemy's  Country  with  by  Land,  and 
to  proceed  to  Montreal  In  order  to  form  a  seige  of  it,  or  to 
break  up  the  Settlements  between  that  and  Quebec ;  the  time  of 
Year  they  should  enter  It,  and  the  number  of  Men  (suppose  of 
Regular  forces)  sufficient  for  the  reduction  of  Quebec,  which 
must  be  attempted  by  Sea  as  well  as  by  Land.  And  I 
should  take  it  as  a  favour  if  you  would  communicate  your 
Sentiments  to  me  upon  the  whole  Affair  as  fully  as  may  be  In 
every  particular. 

The  Colonies  of  Rhode  Island  and  Connectlcutt  have 
nominated  Commissioners  to  meet  the  New  York  Commis- 
sioners ;  I  wish  your  Excellency's  Assembly  would  do  the 
same. 

I  am  in  great  haste  and  with  much  truth 
Sir 

Your  Excellency's  most 

Obedient,  Humble  Servant 
W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy.  Govr.  Wentworth. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  ^ 

Boston,  May  31st,  1746. 
Sir, 

1  had  your  Excellency's  favour  last  night  by  Mr.  Atkin- 
son, and  have  answer'd  the  several  Quaerls  as  well  as  I  can. 

^  The  letter  (of  Apr.  9,  1746)  to  the  Governor  of  Rhode  Island 
Is  printed  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  162,  and  relates  to  raising  troops  in 
the  King's  pay  for  the  Canadian  expedition. 

2  Original  in  Ms.  of  Shirley,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap 
Manuscripts,  61  C,  p.  57.  The  second  portion  of  the  manuscript 
consists  of  questions  regarding  the  expedition,  in  the  hand  of  Went- 

319 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Was  I  in  your  place  I  should  not  be  in  the  least  uneasiness 
about  the  Emission  of  bills  to  which  you  gave  your  Consent  for 
the  Service  of  the  Expedition  against  Cape  Breton,  or  that  which 
you  purpose  to  give  your  consent  to  for  his  Majesty's  Service 
in  this  against  Canada.^  I  don't  wonder  that  you  have  had 
no  answer  concerning  your  lastEmission  ;  theConfusion  caus'd 
by  the  Rebellion  drew  oflF  the  thoughts  of  the  Ministry  from 
every  thing  else ;  Besides  as  you  wrote  'em  word  what  you 
did  upon  the  last  Expedition,  and  have  had  no  Answer 
(which  is  a  sign  that  all  is  well)  I  think  you  have  good  grounds 
to  take  it  for  granted  that  it  was  agreable  to  the  Ministry 
then,  and  to  proceed  now.  But  in  one  word  the  Importance 
of  his  Majesty's  service  and  the  necessity  of  another  emission 
to  carry  it  on  is  a  sufficient  reason  for  your  proceedings. 

A  Committee  of  both  houses  have  consider'd  my  Speech 
to  'em  (which  will  not  be  printed  at  present)  and  reported 
upon  it,  and  the  two  houses  will  I  believe  pass  upon  the  re- 
port today ;  so  that  I  shall  be  able  to  send  you  a  Copy  of  it 
by  the  next  post.  I  have  not  time  to  add  farther  in  my 
hurry,  than  that  I  shall  keep  up  a  strict  correspondence  with 
you  (as  I  hope  your  Excellency  will  do  with  me)  upon  all 
material  points.  I  have  communicated  to  Mr  Atkinson 
the  Duke  of  Newcastle's  Letter  to  my  self,  the  particulars 
of  which  he  will  acquaint  you  with. 

I  am  'till  next  post  with  great  respect  and  Esteem 
Sir 

Your  Excellency's  most  Obedient 
Humble  Servant. 

W.  Shirley.^ 

worth  with  the  answers  furnished  by  Shirley.  They  indicate 
the  latter's  continued  influence  over  the  New  Hampshire  governor. 

-  The  underlining  is  by  Wentworth. 

^  On  this  date  Shirley  wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  acknowl- 
edging the  receipt  of  the  latter's  letters  of  Mar.  14  and  Apr.  9 
with  the  plan  for  the  reduction  of  Canada.  He  agrees  to  do  his 
best  towards  raising  men  for  the  campaign  and  congratulates  the 
Duke  on  the  favorable  turn  the  rebellion  in  Great  Britain  has 
taken.  In  this  letter  occur  the  words  which  seem  to  show  the  feel- 
ing of  Shirley  regarding  the  Acadlans  favorable  to  their  expulsion. 

320 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

The  Affair  of  the  Powder  must  be  postpon'd  for  another 
Week.  Surely  if  you  have  another  Emission,  the  Assembly 
will  pay  for  it,  and  that  would  put  the  best  End  to  the 
matter. 

P.S.  I  shall  esteem  Mr  Atkinson's  ^  serving  in  this  Ex- 
pedition of  very  great  Consequence  to  the  Success  of  it ;  and 
hope  your  Excellency  will  promote  his  going  into  the  Serv- 
ice. I  shall  let  Genl  Saintclair  ^  and  Mr  Warren  know 
my  Sentiments  concerning  him. 
His  Excy  Govr  Wentworth. 

QUERIES  UPON   HIS  GRACE  THE   DUKE  OF    NEW- 
CASTLES    LETTER  DATED  APRIL  9TH   1 746. 

Whether  if  it  be  to  promote  the  Expedition,  you  shall 
make  any  variation,  from  His  Majestys  intention  of  the 
Companys  to  be  raised  to  Consist  of  one  hundred  men. 

I  think  I  can't. 

Speaking  of  the  danger  to  Annapolis,  Shirley  writes  (P.  R.  C, 
C.  O.  5,  901,  p.  7) : 

"...  I  would  beg  Leave  to  observe  to  your  Grace,  that  the 
Danger  to  his  Majesty's  garrison  arises  chiefly  from  within  the 
heart  of  the  government  itself,  the  Inhabitants  and  neighboring 
Indians  whose  Numbers  are  sufficient  of  themselves  with  a  small 
assistance  from  Canada  and  the  help  of  a  proper  Train  of  Artillery 
split  up  the  Bay  in  small  Vessells  (which  would  give  'em  great  En- 
couragement to  take  up  Arms  against  the  garrison)  to  reduce  it. 
However  while  the  Attempt  against  Canada  is  depending,  that 
will  certainly  go  far  towards  holding  the  Inhabitants  of  Nova 
Scotia  in  suspense,  till  the  success  of  it  is  known ;  and  I  hope  by 
next  Spring  they  may  either  be  put  upon  a  better  foot  of  Sub- 
jection, or  the  most  dangerous  among  'em  removed.  ,  .  ." 

^  Theodore  Atkinson,  the  Secretary  of  New  Hampshire  and 
Wentworth's  right-hand  man  in  obtaining  supplies  from  the  colony, 
was  born  at  Newcastle,  N.H.,  Dec.  20,  1697.  Graduated  at 
Harvard  College  in  1718,  and  died  Sept.  22,  1779. 

^  Sir  John  Saint  Clair  or  Sinclair,  Lieutenant-Colonel  in  the 
regular  army,  had  been  selected  by  Newcastle  as  commander  of 
the  eight  battalions  of  British  troops  promised  for  this  expedition, 
and  had  been  given  the  rank  of  Lieutenant-General  in  the  Pro- 
vincial Service.  He  came  to  America  in  1755,  serving  as  deputy 
VOL.1  —  Y  321 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

2  Whether  you  propose  a  bounty  to  the  men  that  shall 
inlist,  and  how  much  and  by  whom  to  be  paid. 

I  propose  a  Bounty,  which  must  be  paid  by  the  Country ; 
I  know  not  yet  the  Quantum. 

3  Whether  the  Arms  and  Cloathing  which  Lieut  Genl  St 
Clair  has  orders  to  make  a  reasonable  allowance  for  the 
Expence  of,  is  not  to  be  paid  for  here,  by  the  respective 
Governmts  or  whether  any  orders  are  Expected  for  drawing 
for  the  Same, 

The  Expence  will  be  paid  for  here  by  the  Governmts  or 
Soldiers ;    and  allow'd  for  General  St  Clair. 

4  Whether  it  is  Expected  that  the  respective  Governmts 
furnish  Vessells  of  War,  transports,  provisions,  and  other 
Necessary  Subsistance  and  Stores  at  their  Expence,  —  or  on 
the  Kings. 

They  must  be  provided  by  the  Governments,  whether 
the  King  reimburses  'em  for  the  Expence  or  not.  It  is  best 
to  construe  the  thing  in  our  own  favour ;  But  it  is  not  clear 
to  me ;  and  We  must  do  as  well  as  we  can  about  it  after- 
wards. 

5  Whether  any  alteration  can  be  made  on  His  Majestys 
Commands,  with  respect  to  the  Rendezvous  appointed  at 
Louisbourg,  if  one  half  of  the  men  or  any  Considerable  part, 
should  choose  rather  to  Joyn  the  Land  Army,  than  go  by 
Sea,  of  this  or  any  other  Government. 

This  will  depend  upon  the  resolution  of  General  Saint 
Clair,  Admiral  Warren,  and  myself. 

Endorsed:    Queries  ^  put  and  answerd  relating  to  Expedition 
May  1746  per  Govr  Shirley. 

quartermaster-general  under  Braddock,  and  was  wounded  in  the 
battle  of  the  Monongahela.  He  served  also  under  Brigadier- 
General  John  Forbes  in  1758. 

^  Newcastle's  letter  of  Apr.  9  is  in  C.  O.  5,  45,  p.  229.  It  is 
of  1700  words,  and  relates  to  the  troops  which  are  to  go  to  Louis- 
bourg under  St.  Clair,  provisions  to  be  made  for  arms  and  clothing, 
and  the  securing  of  pilots  familiar  with  the  St.    Lawrence  River. 

322 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  — PROCLAMATION  1 

By    his    Excellency    William    Shirley  Esqr. 

Captain    General    and    Governour    in    chief 

in  and   over  his  Majesty's  province  of  the 

^  Massachusetts    Bay    in    New    England  — 

A  Proclamation 

Whereas  His  Majesty  has  been  graciously  pleased  to  order 
a  number  of  Troops  under  the  Command  of  the  Honourable 
Lieutenant  General  St.  Clair  to  proceed  from  Great  Britain 
to  Loulsbourgh,  with  a  sufficient  convoy  of  men  of  War,  and 
with  them  a  great  part  of  his  Majestys  Troops  now  In  Garri- 
son at  Loulsbourgh  and  also  with  such  Troops  as  shall  be 
Levied  for  that  purpose  in  his  Majesty's  colonies  in  North 
America  to  attempt  the  immediate  Reduction  of  Canada ; 
and  has  signified  his  Royal  pleasure  to  me,  as  also  to  the 
Governours  of  the  several  provinces  and  colonies  of  Virginia, 
Maryland,  Pensilvania,  New  Jersey,  New  York,  Connecticut 
Rhode  Island,  and  New  Hampshire,  by  Letters  dispatch'd 
from  his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle,  that  the  necessary 
Dispositions  should  be  forthwith  made  for  the  raising  as 
many  men  within  this  and  the  above  mentioned  Govern- 
ments as  the  shortness  of  the  time  will  admit  for  proceeding 
on  the  said  expedition. 

And  whereas  the  Great  and  General  Court  of  this  province 
have  with  the  utmost  Chearfulness  and  unanimity,  Voted 
to  give  all  necessary  and  proper  Encouragement  for  Three 
Thousand  voluntlers  that  shall  inlist  into  his  majesty's 
Service  In  this  Expedition ;  In  obedience  therefore  to  his 
Majesty's  said  Commands,  I  have  thought  fit  with  the  ad- 
vice of  his  Majesty's  Council,  to  Issue  this  Proclamation, 
in  order  to  make  known  his  Majesty's  gracious  Intentions 
and  Declarations  for  the  Encouragement  of  all  able  Bodied, 
effective  men  that  are  inclined  to  Inlist  themselves  into  his 
service  In  the  Land  Expedition,  together  with  the  further 
Encouragement  which  is  offered  by  this  Government  viz. 

^  Original,  Mass.  Archives,  Military  72,  718. 
323 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

That  the  said  Volunteers  will  be  under  such  officers  as  I 
shall  appoint ;  That  they  will  be  immediately  intitlied  (sic) 
to  his  Majesty's  Pay,  the  Officers  from  the  time  they  shall 
engage  in  his  Majesty's  Service  and  the  Soldiers  from  the 
respective  days  on  which  they  shall  be  inlisted ;  That  if 
provision  cannot  be  made  of  Arms  and  Clothing  for  them,  by 
reason  of  the  shortness  of  the  time,  a  reasonable  allowance 
will  be  made  them  in  money  for  the  same ;  That  they  shall 
be  intitled  to  a  share  of  the  Booty  that  shall  be  taken  from 
the  enemy  and  shall  be  sent  back  to  their  several  Habitations 
when  this  Service  shall  be  over,  unless  any  of  them  shall 
desire  to  settle  elsewhere.  And  for  the  further  Encourage- 
ment of  all  Voluntiers  that  shall  engage  in  this  Service,  It 
is  provided  that  they  shall  receive  Thirty  pounds  in  Bills 
of  Credit  of  the  old  tenour,  as  a  Bounty,  as  also  for  each  man 
a  Blanket,  and  a  Bed  for  every  two  men  ;  the  said  Bounty  to 
be  paid  upon  the  Enlistment,  and  the  Blankets  and  Beds  at 
the  time  of  their  Embarkation  or  proceeding  on  the  said 
Expedition ;  and  that  all  such  Voluntiers  as  shall  proceed 
on  this  Expedition  shall  be  Exempted  from  all  Impresses 
for  two  years  after  their  Return. 

Given  at  the  Council  Chamber  in  Boston  the  second  day 
of  June  1746,  in  the  Nineteenth  year  of  the  Reign  of  our 
Sovereign  Lord  George  the  Second  by  the  Grace  of  God,  of 
Great  Britain,  France  and  Ireland,  King,  Defender  of  the 
Faith  &c. 

By  order  of  his  Excellency  the  Governour, 

with  the  advice  of  the  Council. 
J.  WiLLARD  Sec'ry.  W.  Shirley. 

God  Save  the  King. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  1 
Q  Boston,  June  6th,  1746. 

oIR, 

I  am  favour'd  with  your  Excellency's  of  yesterday's  date 
by  your  Express,  and    congratulate  you  upon  your  Success 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
C,  p.  58. 

324 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

with  your  Assembly  in  prevailing  on  'em  to  vote  an  Encour- 
agemt  for  looo  Men,^  and  wish  you  Success  in  raising  'em, 
as  I  doubt  not  but  you  will.  I  am  very  sorry  Mr  Atkinson 
seems  so  backward  to  serve  in  this  Expedition ;  I  flatter'd 
my  self,  when  I  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  him  here,  that  he 
was  not  averse  to  it ;  Nothing  in  my  power  shall  be  wanting 
to  engage  him  in  it ;  and  if  my  representations  of  his  Serv- 
iceableness  and  Consequence  in  it  either  to  Lieutent.  Genl. 
Saint  Clair,  or  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  can  be  of  any  weight 
as  very  possibly  they  may  to  both,  he  shall  have  'em  in  an 
hearty  manner.  I  will  use  my  utmost  Endeavours  that  a 
party  of  the  New  Hampshire  Men  shall  be  employ'd  by  Land, 
and  doubt  not  but  a  large  party  of  'em  will. 

I  will  keep  up  a  constant  correspondence  with  your 
Excellency,  and  no  Assistance  in  my  power  shall  be  wanting 
to  you  ;  particularly  in  the  Affair  of  provisions ;  and  am 
with  very  great  regard  and  Esteem 

^^^        Your  Excy's  most  Obedt 

Servant  W.  Shirley. 

His  Excellency  Govr.  Wentworth. 

^  The  underlining  is  by  Wentworth.  The  report  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  the  New  Hampshire  Assembly  provided  for  the  enlist- 
ment of  one  hundred  good  eifective  men  and  that  £60,000  be  struck 
jff  for  needed  expense.  In  the  act  as  passed  there  was  substituted 
for  the  number  one  hundred  the  words  "as  many  men  as  can  be 
got  ready  to  imbark  by  the  last  day  of  July  next"  (N.  H.  Prov. 
Papers,  5,  812-813).  On  June  2,  Shirley  had  sent  letters  to  the 
several  New  England  governors  (Kimball,  Corres.  Col.  Gov.  R.  I. 
I,  424;  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  13,  223-225),  stating  the  support 
which  Massachusetts  would  give  the  expedition  and  inclosing  his 
own  proclamation  of  encouragement  to  men  enlisting  for  the 
campaign  against  Canada.  Printed  and  manuscript  copies  of  this 
proclamation  were  sent  to  England  and  are  in  the  Public  Record 
OfBce  (C.  O.  5,  45,  pp.  146  and  277,  and  ibid.  901,  p.  209).  A 
printed  copy  is  in  the  Mass.  Hist.  Society  also.  On  June  4,  Gover- 
nor Law  of  Connecticut  promised  600  men  (Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll. 
13,  227),  which  number  was  raised  later  to  lOOO.  Parkman  states 
that  Rhode  Island  agreed  to  contribute  300  men,  New  York  1600, 
New  Jersey  500,  Maryland  300,  Virginia  100,  and  that  a  popular 
movement  in  Pennsylvania  furnished  400  recruits.  ("  Half  Century 
of  Conflict,"  Boston,   1892,  2,   169.) 

325 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  i 

Boston,  June  8th,  1746. 
Sir, 

I  am  favour'd  with  your  Excellency's  by  the  post,  in  an- 
swer to  which,  as  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  says  expressly  in  his 
letter  to  me  that  I  am  to  have  the  appointment  of  all  the 
Officers  for  the  men  to  be  rais'd  within  this  governmt 
except  the  Officer  who  is  to  have  the  General  Command  of 
the  forces  rais'd  within  the  four  governmts  of  New  England 
(who  is  to  be  appointed  by  Genl  Saint  Clair)  and  that  blank 
Commissions  are  to  be  sent  me,  (and  no  doubt  to  all  his 
Majy's  other  Govrs.  for  the  same  purpose,)  I  apprehend  it 
is  very  clear  that  the  forces  rais'd  in  each  Governmt  are  not 
to  be  under  Command  of  any  field  Officer,  or  Regimental 
Officer,  but  such  as  the  respective  Govrs.  shall  appoint;^ 
and  I  take  it  for  Granted  that  field  Officers  are  of  course  to 
be  appointed.  However  I  have  not  as  yet  lay'd  my  self 
under  any  Obligation  or  Promise  in  that  respect;  but  tell 
those  who  inquire  of  me  concerning  this  point  that  it  is  im- 
possible for  me  to  know  how  many  Colonels  and  other  field 
Officers  Commissions  I  shall  receive  till  I  see  the  Commis- 
sions themselves.    As  you  are  to  raise  1000  men,  I  think  you 

1  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
C,  p.  58. 

2  The  underlines  are  by  Wentworth.  The  zeal  of  Shirley  in 
this  proposed  expedition  is  conspicuous,  as  are  the  points  which 
appealed  to  Wentworth.  The  underlinings  by  the  New  Hamp- 
shire governor  show  his  anxiety  to  know  with  whom  the  advan- 
tage of  military  appointments  was  to  rest.  Wentworth  had 
dismissed  the  New  Hampshire  Assembly  on  June  5,  and  was 
ready  to  appoint  officers  as  soon  as  or  even  before  troops  should 
be  raised. 

Ten  days  later  Shirley  wrote  to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  thank- 
ing the  Duke  for  recommending  him  to  the  command  of  General 
Richard  Phillips's  regiment  and  suggesting  more  definitely  the 
removal  of  the  French  from  Nova  Scotia. 


326 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

can't  well  doubt  of  having  the  appointment  of  field  Officers 
for  'em. 

I  am  sincerely 

Your  Excy's  most  Obedt 
Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy  Govr.  Wentworth. 

Surely  there  never  was  a  number  of  Companies  under  one 
General  Command  specially  appointed  for  that  purpose,  with- 
out any  field  Officers. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY   TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ' 

Boston,  June  i8th,   1746. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Since  I  receiv'd  your  Grace's  Letter  dated  the  9th  of 
Aprill,  I  have  the  honour  to  receive  that  of  the  14th  of  March 
informing  me  of  the  Imbarkation  of  Major  General  Framp- 
ton's  Regiment  for  Louisbourg,  the  appointment  of  Mr 
Knowles  to  succeed  Admiral  Warren  in  the  Government  of 
Cape  Breton,  and  of  his  Majesty's  Commands  to  the  Admiral 
and  myself  for  concerting  Measures  for  his  Service  at  Boston, 
and  transmitting  our  Opinion  touching  the  Number  of  Forces 
necessary  to  be  rais'd  in  North  America  for  the  reduction 
of  Canada  :  And  I  am  particularly  oblig'd  to  your  Grace  for 
the  Assurance,  you  are  therein  pleas'd  to  give  me  that  you 
will  recommend  me  to  his  Majesty  for  the  command  of 
Lieutenant  General  Phillips's  Regiment,  when  it  shall  be- 
come vacant,  which  additional  Instance  of  your  Grace's  Good- 
ness to  the  other  favours  confer'd  upon  me  I  shall  ever  re- 
tain a  most  gratefull  sense  of  :  And  I  may  assure  your  Grace 
that  one  of  the  principal  motives,  I  had  to  desire  I  might  suc- 
ceed General  Phillips  in  his  Command,  was  the  hopes  I  have 
of  it's  putting  it  in  my  power  to  promote  his  Majesty's  Serv- 
ice in  his  Province  of  Acadie,  or  Nova  Scotia  by  securing 

ip.  R.  0.,  C.  0.5,  901,  p.  13. 

327 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  fidelity  and  Allegiance  of  the  Inhabitants  there  to  his 
Majesty's  Government  in  the  best  manner,  and  thereby  pre- 
venting the  French  from  making  themselves  masters  of  it, 
the  Acquisition  of  which  to  them  with  the  help  of  the  Indians 
would  likewise  endanger  the  Loss  of  the  Province  of  New 
Hampshire  and  the  Mast  Country  to  his  Majesty  with  the 
Fishery  of  the  Acadie  or  Cape  Sable's  Shoar,  including  that 
of  Canso,  to  his  Subjects  here  in  present ;  and,  should  not 
Canada  be  reduc'd,  would  enable  the  Enemy  to  harrass  and 
Diminish  all  his  Majesty's  Colonies  on  the  Continent,  and 
have  an  inevitable  Tendency  to  make  themselves  masters 
of  the  whole  of  it  in  time ;  not  to  mention  the  continual 
Danger,  which  their  possession  of  Nova  Scotia  would  at  the 
same  time  expose  Cape  Breton  and  even  Newfoundland  to. 

These  Considerations  have  induc'd  me  to  take  the  Liberty 
of  submitting  it  to  your  Grace,  whether  it  might  not  be  for 
his  Majesty's  Service,  that  before  the  six  Regiments  to  be 
employ'd  against  Canada  return  to  England,  orders  may  be 
sent  that  such  part  of  'em,  as  shall  be  thought  necessary  to 
assist  in  removing  the  most  obnoxious  of  the  French  In- 
habitants of  Nova  Scotia  from  thence,  should  be  employ'd 
in  that  Service,  which  would  not  take  up  much  time ;  I  am 
not  certain  whether  a  sufficient  strength  might  not  be  spar'd 
from  the  Garrison  at  Louisbourg  a  short  time  for  this  pur- 
pose which  if  it  could,  would  make  the  assistance  of  any  other 
Troops  needless.   .   .   . 

If  your  Grace  should  think  this  deserves  so  much  of  your 
Attention  there  will  be  time  enough  for  transmitting  his 
Majesty's  Commands  to  me  upon  it  before  the  present  Ex- 
pedition is  over. 

I  am  with  the  most  Dutifull  Regard 
My  Lord  Duke 
Your  Grace's  most  Devoted 

and  most  obedient  Servant    ttt    o 

W.  Shirley. 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed:    t>  t  o  ^ 

Boston.  June   i8.    1746. 

Govr  Shirley. 

B  Augt  5.  328 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY    AND    PETER    WARREN   TO 
WILLIAM  GREENE  1 

Boston,  July  4th,   1746. 
Sir, 

Last  week  Mr.  Warren  came  here  in  the  Chester 
from  Louisbourg  in  order  to  settle  with  Mr.  Shirley  (and 
Gen.  St.  Clair's  Approbation  when  he  shall  arrive,)  the  plan 
of  Operations  for  the  Expedition  against  Canada,  in  the 
most  speedy  manner  which  the  advanced  season  of  the  year 
requires  to  be  done  without  the  least  loss  of  time ;  as  it  also 
does  that  all  the  governmts  concerned  in  it,  should  push 
on  the  completing  of  the  Levies  and  making  the  necessary 
preparations  and  dispositions  for  it  within  their  respective 
Colonies  with  the  utmost  dispatch,  and  in  doing  which  we 
think  they  should  act  with  the  utmost  Vigor  not  regarding 
what  they  may  esteem  to  be  barely  their  just  Quota  and 
proportion  of  Men  and  Money  in  this  Expedition  but  the 
Importance  of  the  Enterprise  towards  either  laying  a  most 
sure  Foundation  for  the  General  Welfare  and  Prosperity  of 
all  these  Colonies,  or  leaving  them  in  so  precarious  a  situa- 
tion as  may  sometime  or  other  expose  them  to  be  reduced 
under  the  Power  and  Subjection  of  the  French,  upon  which 
account  they  should  consider  themselves  as  One  Body  united 
in  the  common  Cause  in  which,  if  any  one  particular  Colony 
should  exert  itself  beyond  either  its  just  proportion  or  abili- 
ties, it  may  (we  doubt  not)  be  depended  upon  that  the  ex- 
ceedings  of  such  Colony  will  be  made  up  to  it,  either  by  an 
average   to  be   afterwards   settled   among   all   the   Colonies 

^Printed:  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  185.  Much  the  same  letter  was 
written  to  Governor  George  Thomas  of  Pennsylvania  (i  Penna. 
Arch.  I,  689)  and  to  other  governors.  On  July  8  Shirley  and 
Warren  wrote  to  Isaac  Townsend  at  Louisbourg  advising  that  ships 
be  kept  in  the  St.  Lawrence  because  of  the  naval  and  land  arma- 
ment preparing  at  Brest.  The  letter  of  Townsend  and  Knowles 
to  Shirley  and  Warren  of  July  13  gives  an  account  of  the  defenses 
being  prepared  at  Cape  Breton.  Both  letters  are  in  the  Public 
Record  Office,  Admiralty  Sect.,  Ins.  Letters,  480. 

329 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

concerned  or  by  a  Reimbursement  from  His  Majesty  or  the 
Parliament  of  Great  Britain. 

And  it  ought  to  be  in  a  particular  manner  considered  that 
this  will  in  all  probability  be  the  only  favorable  Opportunity 
of  attempting  the  driving  of  the  French  off  from  the  northern 
part  of  this  Continent  which  if  neglected  may  never  be  re- 
deemed but  followed  close  by  an  endless  train  of  Disadvan- 
tages and  Difficulties  to  all  His  Majesty's  northern  Colonies, 
too  many  to  be  enumerated  here  and  too  obvious  to  need  it. 
Wherefore  we  trust  that  all  His  Majesty's  Governmts  upon 
this  Continent  will  leave  nothing  untried  for  raising  a  Suffi- 
cient Force  for  securing  the  Success  of  the  present  Enter- 
prise, that  is,  all  the  Force  they  can  raise. 

The  securing  of  the  Assistance  of  the  Six  Nations  we  esteem 
a  point  most  essential  to  the  success  of  the  Expedition,  and 
necessary  to  be  gained  at  any  rate  ;  Mr.  Gooch  writes  to  Mr. 
Shirley  that  he  will  come  with  presents  in  his  hands  for  this 
purpose.  All  possible  dispatch  is  so  apparently  necessary  for 
our  succeeding  in  this  Expedition,  or  even  proceeding  upon  it, 
that  we  are  persuaded  Your  Honour  will  agree  with  us  in  it. 

We  inclose  Your  Honour  a  Memorandum  of  what  we 
apprehend  necessary  to  be  provided,  and  doubt  not  but  you 
will  be  pleased  to  provide  what  part  of  them  can  be  had  in 
Your  Governmt.  We  hope  in  particular  that  two  armed 
Sloops,  Brigantines  or  Snows  with  eighty  Men  and  ten  Car- 
riage guns  each  may  be  procured  by  Your  Honour  :  And  we 
think  that  as  it  will  be  absolutely  necessary  that  the  troops 
should  be  prepared  to  winter  in  the  Enemy's  Country,  ten 
months  Provisions  should  be  got  for  them  and  some  salt  put 
on  board  every  Transport  which  will  be  of  service  to  cure 
what  fresh  Stock  may  be  had  in  Canada  ;  And  as  there  will 
be  a  greater  number  of  Seamen  wanting  for  not  only  the 
transports  and  armed  vessels  from  the  colonies  but  His 
Majesty's  Ships  also  at  Louisbourg,  the  Vigilant  in  particular, 
we  hope  Your  Honour  will  assist  as  much  as  may  be  by  an 
impress  or  otherwise,  as  you  shall  think  proper.^ 

^  In  reply  to  these  suggestions  Governor  Greene  wrote  on  July  i8  : 
"As  to  what  you  write  about  procuring  two  armed  Snows  or 

330 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

We  take  the  liberty  to  observe  to  you,  that  we  are  assured 
it  will  be  a  matter  of  surprise  to  His  Majesty's  Ministry  to 
find  what  a  small  proportion  of  Forces  the  Colony  under 
Your  governmt  has  contributed  towards  carrying  on  this 
Expedition ;  and  we  flatter  ourselves  that  when  Your  As- 
sembly shall  consider  how  much  below  their  abilities  they 
have  acted  upon  this  extraordinary  Occasion  and  compare 
themselves  and  what  they  have  done  for  the  common  cause 
with  the  other  Colonies  of  New  England,  and  in  particular 
with  New  Hampshire,  and  the  part  they  have  acted  at  this 
important  Juncture ;  that  they  will  think  it  not  only  rea- 
sonable and  fit  but  for  their  Interest  to  augment  their  Levies 
to  a  just  number.  We  beg  leave  further  to  observe,  that  the  ex- 
traordinary bounty  Your  Assembly  has  voted  for  encouraging 
those  few  men  to  enlist  which  are  to  be  raised  as  the  Quota  of 
your  governmt  has  not  had  the  best  effect  upon  His  Majesty's 
Service  in  the  neighboring  Colonies,  having  as  we  are  in- 
formed not  only  drawn  several  of  their  men  from  them,  but 
damped  the  enlistments  within  those  Colonies  where  the 
bounty  given,  though  a  very  sufficient  one,  is  yet  much  be- 
low that  given  by  Your  Assembly. 

Mr.  Shirley  is  in  hopes  that  Troops  raised  in  this  Province 

Brigantines  &c.,  cannot  determine  without  the  approbation  of  the 
General  Assembly ;  for  which  purpose,  Intend  to  be  advised  by 
the  Council,  whether  they  think  proper  to  call  them  together  before 
the  day  they  stand  adjourned  to.  Our  Colony  Sloop  will  sail  with 
the  Transports,  with  one  hundred  men  on  board  (Officers  included) 
well  found  and  provided. 

"  As  for  the  Provisions  theGeneral  Assembly  has  devolved  a  power 
on  the  Committee  for  carrying  on  the  affairs  of  the  Expedition, 
and  care  will  be  taken  to  put  a  ;  ufficient  quantity  on  board  with 
some  salt;  Our  Colony  Sloop  and  Transports  are  now  nearly  ready, 
and  I  design  they  shall  sail  Immediately  to  Boston  for  the  benefit  of 
a  Convoy  and  go  In  company  with  the  other  Forces  to  Louisbourg. 
As  to  what  you  write  about  the  Coasters,  during  the  time  of  the 
Embargo  here  not  one  was  stopped  a  moment  from  proceeding 
on  his  Voyage  being  all  exempted  In  the  warrant,  and  at  all  other 
times  never  met  with  any  hindrance  here." 

No  encouragement  was  given  as  to  larger  levies  of  troops,  for  the 
governor  had  small  hopes  of  obtaining  more  from  the  Assembly. 

33^ 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

may  sail  by  the  20th  instant  under  convoy  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Frigate  and  probably  of  His  Majesty's  Ship  Chester, 
and  we  shall  be  glad  if  you  think  proper  that  your  Troops 
should  rendezvous  here,  to  have  them  go  in  company  with  the 
Massachusetts  and  Connecticut  Forces  which  latter  propose 
their  rendezvous  at  Boston. 

We  have  in  a  joint  letter  desired  Lieut.  Genl.  St.  Clair  to 
come  to  Boston  as  it  will  save  much  time  in  forwarding  the 
Expedition  for  doing  which  nothing  shall  be  wanting  on  our 
Parts  nor  will,  we  are  persuaded,  on  Your  Honours. 
We  are  with  very  great  regard.  Sir, 

Your  most  Obedient  humble  servants. 

W.  Shirley. 
P.  Warren. 
The  Honble  Willm  Greene  Esqr. 

We  desire  the  favor  of  you  to  let  us  know  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible the  number  of  Troops  you  shall  be  able  to  raise  in  Your 
Governmt  and  by  what  time  they  will  get  to  the  place  of 
rendezvous. 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY    TO  THE  DUKE  OF 
NEWCASTLE 

[Extract  ^] 

Boston,  July  7th,  1746. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

4:  4:  :)(  4c  4:  4=  ^ 

Should  His  Majesty's  Troops  make  themselves  Masters 
of  Quebec  which  I  am  inform'd  has  not  600  Houses  in  it, 
and  is  not  near  so  strong  as  Louisbourg,  that  would  in  eflFect 
be  the  reduction  of  the  whole  Country,  and  it  seems  to  me 
that  if  they  could  take  Montreal  which  is  not  so  strong  as 
Quebec,  though  they  should  fail  in  their  Attempt  against  Que- 
bec immediately,  that  would  have  the  same  Effect  before  the 
ensuing  Spring,  and  should  they  fail  of  Success  against  either 

^  The  entire  manuscript  Is  In  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  901,  p.  14.  The 
first  part  of  the  letter  describes  previous  plans  and  expeditions 
against  Canada. 

332 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  'em  before  the  Winter  comes  on,  I  am  Inform'd  that  the 
Buildings  on  the  Isle  of  Orleans  at  a  very  small  distance  from 
Quebec  would  afford  many  Barracks  for  His  Majesty's 
Troops  to  winter  in. 

The  immediate  attending  of  the  mouth  of  St.  Lawrence 
with  three  or  four  Cruizing  Ships  to  Intercept  all  Succours, 
Provisions  or  Stores  from  going  up  to  Quebec,  or  the  neg- 
lect of  it  will  very  much  Contribute  either  to  the  Success  or 
disappointment  of  this  Enterprize  :  I  wish  that  may  have 
been  done  effectually,  Mr.  Warren  and  I  have  recommended 
it  to  Admiral  Townshend  in  the  strongest  Terms. 

By  the  best  Accounts  to  be  procur'd  of  the  fighting  men 
in  Canada,  their  regular  Troops  may  be  computed  at  about 
500,  their  Militia  from  10,000  to  15,000,  and  their  Indians 
from  500,  to  800  :  The  French  Prisoners  here  talk  of  40,000, 
but  not  the  least  Credit  is  given  to  this  Account,  and  one 
[  ^]  a  French  Priest  who  came  from  Canada  to  New  York 
in  1744,  and  is  more  to  be  Credited  reckons  'em  at  about 
20,000.  And  he  is  of  Opinion  that  upon  the  Appearance 
of  the  English  Armament  before  Quebec,  the  Inhabitants 
would  readily  surrender  and  take  the  Oaths  of  Allegiance 
to  His  Majesty,  upon  the  Terms  of  their  being  permitted  to 
Stay  in  the  Country  upon  the  Foot  of  Subjects,  and  being 
Indemnify'd  in  their  Estates  and  Possessions,  if  such 
Terms  should  be  offer'd  to  'em. 

I  transmit  this  general  imperfect  Account  of  our  Appre- 
hensions and  proceedings  here  to  your  Grace  for  the  present : 
and  upon  the  Settlement  of  the  Scheme  of  the  Expedition 
with  General  Saint  Clair  when  he  shall  arrive,  shall  send  your 
Grace  a  more  full  account. 

Mr.  Warren  and  I  are  acting  jointly  for  His  Majesty's 
Service  in  the  best  manner  we  are  capable  of  doing,  and  have 
desir'd  for  greater  dispatch  that  General  Saint  Clair  would 
be  pleas'd  to  come  here,  immediately  after  his  arrival  at 
Louisbourg,  as  we  are  of  opinion  that  his  coming  hither  to 
settle  every  thing  with  us  would  save  time. 

*  The  name  is  not  given  by  the  writer,  indicating  that  Shirley 
heard  the  report  but  not  the  name  of  its  author. 

333 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Nothing  shall  be  wanting  on  my  part  In  this  important 
Affair  for  His  Majesty's  Service. 
I  am  with  the  most  dutiful  Regards 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  devoted,  and  most 
Obedient  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 
Endorsed : 

Boston,  July  7th  1746. 
Govr    Shirley. 
5  Augt  23  d. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE 

[Extract  ^] 

Boston,  July  28,  1746. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

4e  4:  4c  3iE  *  4:  4: 

I  must  acknowledge  I  should  rather  apprehend  the  French 
Fleet  (if  It  Is  design'd  for  North  America)  Is  order'd  to  Can- 
ada ;  or  else  to  Annapolis  Royal,  where  the  Enemy  may  de- 
pend that  upon  the  Appearance  of  such  an  Armament  the 
French  Inhabitants  of  Nova  Scotia  (to  the  Amount  of  be- 
tween 5  and  6000  fighting  men)  and  a  considerable  Number 
of  Indians  and  some  Canadeans,  would  Immediately  join  'em, 
and  they  would  have  a  most  convenient  Country  to  ren- 
dezvous in  within  a  very  few  days  sail  of  Chappeaurouge 
Bay  at  Cape  Breton,  and  be  not  far  from  Canada,  than  that 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  901,  p.  17.  A  transcript  Is  In  the  Parkman 
Papers  in  the  Mass.  Hist.  Society.  This  letter  supplements 
the  one  of  July  7  {ante,  p.  332).  It  is  concerned  chiefly  with  Shirley's 
complaint  that  the  commissions  for  the  officers  of  the  Canadian 
expedition  have  not  arrived  and  the  raising  of  levies  is  much  hin- 
dered thereby.  A  siege  of  Quebec  is  urged,  and  the  need  of  an 
adequate  guard  at  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Lawrence  to  prevent  the 
entrance  of  D'Anville's  fleet  is  emphasized.  The  extract  printed 
gives  Shirley's  view  of  the  conditions  in  Nova  Scotia  and  the 
prospect  of  an  uprising  of  the  French  there. 

334 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

they  should  attempt  to  enter  Louisbourg  Harbour  with 
their  Ships ;  and  I  am  the  more  inclin'd  to  this  Opinion 
from  the  Accounts  I  have  receiv'd  lately  from  Mr  Mas- 
carene,  and  the  officers  of  the  Garrison  at  Annapolis  Royal 
which  inform  me  that  the  French  Inhabitants  at  Menis  and 
Schiegneto  (in  Nova  Scotia)  have  cut  off  all  communica- 
tion with  the  garrison  for  these  last  five  Weeks,  and  have 
stop'd  the  Messengers  sent  from  thence  by  Mr  Mascarene 
for  Intelligences ;  being  in  Expectation  of  an  Armament 
from  France.  And  indeed  it  seems  probable  that  this  will 
for  ever  be  the  Case ;  and  that  the  Province  of  Nova  Scotia 
will  never  be  out  of  Danger,  whilst  the  French  Inhabitants 
are  suifer'd  to  remain  in  Nova  Scotia  upon  their  present 
Foot  of  Subjection. 


I  have  the  Honour  to  be  with  the  most  Dutiful  Regard 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Devoted  and 
Most  Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH^ 

Boston,  July  29,  1746. 
Sir, 

I  did  not  discover  'till  now  that  one  thing  slipt  me  in  an- 
swering your  Excellency's  last  letter  to  me  and  Mr  Warren, 
viz.  what  provision  there  is  for  billeting  the  Men  'till  their 
Embarcation.  As  to  that  Article,  the  Assembly  of  this 
province  has  voted  an  Allowance  for  that,  tho'  too  scanty 
an  one,  and  it  seems  to  arise  naturally  from  the  first  grant 
of  provisions  for  the  Soldiers.     I  would  farther  observe  that 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts, 
61  C,  p.  66. 

335 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

my  Assembly  has  voted  provisions  sufficient  to  supply  the 
Massachusetts  Troops  'till  the  first  of  June  next. 
I  am  in  haste 

Your  Excellency's  most 

Obedient,  Humble  Servt 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy  Govr  Wentworth. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE  OF 
NEWCASTLE 

[Extract^] 

Boston,  Aug.  15,  1746. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

I  shall  finish  my  troubleing  your  Grace  upon  the  Afi"airs 
of  Nova  Scotia  with  this  Letter  after  having  once  more 
Submitted  it  to  your  Grace's  Consideration  as  a  proper 
Scheme  for  better  securing  the  Subjection  of  the  French  In- 
habitants and  Indians  there ;  that  the  Governour  and  Coun- 
cil or  such  other  Person  or  Persons  as  his  Majesty  shall  think 
fitt  to  join  with  'em,  should  have  a  special  authority  and 
directions  from  his  Majesty,  forthwith  to  Apprehend  and 
Examine  a  convenient  number  of  such  of  the  Inhabitants,  as 
shall  be  by  them  judg'd  to  be  most  obnoxious  and  Dangerous 
to  his  Majesty's  Government,  and  upon  finding  'em  guilty  of 
holding  any  treasonable  Correspondence  with  the  Enemy  &c 
to  dispose  of  them  and  their  Estates  in  such  manner,  as  his 
Majesty  shall  order  by  his  commissions  and  to  promise  his 
Majesty's  Gracious  Pardon  and  a  general  Indemnity  to  the 
Rest  for  what  is  past  upon  their  taking  the  Oaths  of  Alle- 
giance to  his  Majesty;  And  to  Cause  either  two  strong 
Blockhouses  (or  small  Forts)  capable  of  holding  100  Men 
each  to  be  Built,  one  in  Menis  and  the  other  in  Schiegnecto, 
which  may  be  Garrison'd  out  of  Phillips's  Regiment  when 
Compleated  or  else  that  at  least  one  Blockhouse  (or  small 

1  (Duplicate)  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  901,  p.  20. 

33(> 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Fort)  should  be  Built  at  Menis  capable  of  holding  150  Men ; 
and  a  trading  house  be  kept  at  the  Fort  at  MenIs  or  some 
other  part  of  the  Province  well  Stock'd  with  all  proper 
Supplies  for  the  Indians  to  be  sold  or  barter'd  to  'em  for 
Furrs  &c  at  the  most  Reasonable  Rates,  and  some  presents 
annually  distributed  to  'em  :  by  which  means  and  removing 
the  Romish  Priests  out  of  the  Province,  and  introducing 
Protestant  English  Schools,  and  French  Protestant  Minis- 
ters, and  due  encouragement  given  to  such  of  the  Inhabit- 
-ants,  as  shall  Conform  to  the  Protestant  Religion,  and  send 
their  Children  to  the  EngUsh  Schools,  the  present  Inhabit- 
ants might  probably  at  least  be  kept  in  Subjection  to  his 
Majesty's  Government,  and  from  treasonable  Correspond- 
ences with  the  Canadeans ;  and  the  next  Generation  in  a 
great  measure  become  true  Protestant  Subjects ;  and  the 
Indians  there  soon  Reclaim'd  to  an  entire  dependance  upon 
and  subjection  to  his  Majesty ;  which  might  also  have  an 
happy  Influence  upon  some  of  the  Tribes  now  In  the  French 
Interest. 

Your  Grace  will  be  pleased  to  Excuse  all  Incorrectness  in 
this  rough  Sketch.     I  am  with  the  most  Dutifull  Regard, 

My  Lord  Duke, 
Your  Grace's  most  Devoted  and  Most  Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 


PAUL  MASCARENE  TO  WILLIAM   SHIRLEY 

[Extracts  ^] 
Sir, 

4c  4t  41  4:  *  *  4e 

The  Canadeans  seem  to  be  resolved  to  keep  footing  in 
this  province,  tho  their  fleet  should  not  come  this  fall. 
Whether  they  will  make  any  attempt  on  this  garrison  with- 
out their  fleet  is  what  I  am  not  able  to  determine,  but  their 
staying  so  near  us  this  winter  will  certainly  prove  dangerous  to 

^  Printed  in  full :  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  479.     John  Paul 
Mascarene  was  born  at  Castras  in  Languedoc,  France,  in  1684. 
The  revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes  having  obliged  his  father, 
VOL.  I  —  z  337 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  safety  of  this  place,  considering  the  inhabitants  we  have 
about  us  and  the  soldiers  we  have  in  the  garrison,  that  part 
of  them  which  came  lately  from  England  having  many 
Irish  and  foreign  papists  among  them.  Five  of  them  are 
gone  clear  off  to  the  enemy ;  and  I  have  by  means  of  Lieut. 
Gorham  and  his  rangers  retaken  five  others  who  were  going 
the  same  way.  I  would  therefore  propose  that  if  a  suffi- 
cient force  cannot  be  sent  immediately  to  root  the  enemy 
out  of  this  province,  two  good  sloops,  not  too  sharp  bottom'd, 
mann'd  with  fifty  or  sixty  good  men  each,  should  come  here, 
which  with  the  man  of  war  now  here  and  the  tender,  which 
we  ought  and  I  hope  will  have  sent  to  us,  might  go  up  the 
Bay  to  harrass  and  keep  the  enemy  in  play  till  the  expedi- 
tion to  Canada  is  over,  and  a  more  vigorous  attempt  can 
be  made. 

The  garrison  here  consist  of  294  men,  including  Serjeants, 
corporals,  drumrs,  invalids  and  prisoners,  which  subtracted 
reduces  the  number  of  able  private  men  to  about  two  hun- 
dred and  twenty,  to  whom  must  be  added  twenty  rangers 
with  six  gunners  and  matrosses  and  the  artificers  belonging 
to  the  Board  of  Ordnance.  The  worst  is  we  can  hardly 
afford  room  for  more,  the  new  barracks  having  gone  on  very 
slowly  for  want  of  materials,  that  is,  bricks  and  lime,  which 
came  but  lately  from  Boston,  so  that  the  second  story  is 

who  was  a  Huguenot,  to  leave  France,  young  Mascarene  fell  to  the 
charge  of  his  grandmother.  At  the  age  of  twelve  he  went  to 
Geneva,  where  he  was  educated,  going  from  thence  to  England 
where  he  was  naturalized  in  1706  and  received  a  lieutenant's  com- 
mission. He  accompanied  the  troops  to  America  in  171 1,  and  was 
stationed  in  Nova  Scotia,  where  he  rose  to  be  Lieutenant-Colonel 
in  the  12th  Regiment  of  foot  commanded  by  Colonel  Phillips,  who 
was  Governor  of  Nova  Scotia  in  1720,  and  of  whose  Council  Mas- 
carene became  a  member.  In  1740  he  became  Lieutenant-Gov- 
ernor of  Nova  Scotia,  holding  this  office  until  he  was  succeeded  by 
Governor  Cornwallis  in  July,  1749.  He  continued  a  member  of 
the  Governor's  Council  until  1750,  when  he  obtained  leave  to  resign 
because  of  his  age.  He  was  made  Colonel  in  the  army,  and  retired 
with  his  family  to  Boston,  where  he  died  Jan.  22,  1760.  N.  E. 
Hist,  and  Gen.  Reg.  9,  239. 

338 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

but  just  beginning  to  raise,  which  has  prevented  me  hitherto 
pressing  for  more  men,  tho  I  am  sensible  I  may  want  them. 
If  the  two  sloops  should  come  that  want  may  be  supply'd 
by  throwing  the  men  in  the  garrison,  if  we  should  be  be- 
sieg'd  by  land. 

Admiral  Townsend  has  sent  positive  orders  to  Capt  Col- 
lins to  repair  to  Louisbourg.  He  is  gone  down  in  order  to 
take  the  first  opportunity  of  wind  and  weather.  The  said 
Admiral  has  sent  Capt  Rous  in  the  Shirley  to  keep  here. 
This  ship  is  but  half  the  force  of  the  other,  but,  however, 
may  serve  better  in  any  expedition  up  the  Bay,  where  the 
other  would  be  of  no  use.  Thus  I  have  in  this  and  my 
former  letters  given  your  Excellency  an  account  of  the  state 
of  this  Province  and  of  this  garrison,  and  must  leave  it  to 
you  to  afford  the  assistance  which  the  present  circumstances 
will  allow  of.  I  have  writ  both  to  Admiral  Townsend  and 
Governour  Knowles,  and  sent  them  duplicates  of  the  in- 
clos'd  information  with  an  acct  of  the  state  we  are  in, 
which  may  be  vouch'd  by  Capt  Collins,  who  is  well  ac- 
quainted with  it,  but  I  am  apt  to  believe  that  the  succours 
we  want  may  be  more  readily  and  more  effectually  obtain'd 
by  your  Excellency's  means,  your  people  being  for  the  most 
part  both  soldiers,  sailors,  and  wood  rangers,  and  more 
acquainted  in  the  way  of  annoying  the  enemy  we  have  to 
deal  with.  I  am,  with  very  great  esteem  and  respect.  Sir, 
Your  most  humble  and  most  obedient  servant. 

P.  Mascarene. 

Annapolis  Royal,  20th  August,  1746. 
His  Excellency  Governour  Shirley. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

My  Lord  Duke,  ^^^'°"'  ^"^"^^  ^'4'  ^746. 

A  Gentleman  of  this  Place  having  Communicated  to  me 
a  Letter  from  Louisbourg,  wherein  he  is  inform'd  by  the 

ip.  R.  O.,  CO.  5,  901,  p.  31. 

339 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Writer  of  it,  that  Mr  Knowles  had  assur'd  him  he  was  in 
daily  Expectation  of  receiving  Orders  from  his  Majesty 
(in  answer  to  his  own  Representations  which  the  Writer 
tells  the  Gentleman  Mr  Knowles  had  permitted  him  to 
read)  for  demolishing  the  Fortifications  and  filling  up  the  Har- 
bour of  Louisbourg  and  abandoning  the  Island,  I  think  it 
fit,  in  Case  this  Intelligence  is  true  (as  from  the  Credit  of 
the  Person  who  sends  it  and  the  Confirmation  of  it  by 
other  Persons  of  character  at  Louisbourg  there  is  room  to 
think  it  may)  his  Majesty  should  be  appriz'd  (if  Mr  Knowles 
has  not  done  it  already  in  his  Representation)  that  at  St. 
Ann's  on  the  East  Side  of  the  Island  there  is  a  very  Commo- 
dious Harbour,  capable  of  being  fortified  as  strongly  as 
that  of  Louisbourg,  and  at  the  bottom  of  which  a  Town 
and  Garrison  may  be  built  to  as  great  Advantage  as  the 
present  Fortress  of  Louisbourg  is ;  and  that  the  French 
themselves  when  they  first  became  Masters  of  the  Island 
were  a  considerable  time  divided  in  their  judgment  whether 
they  should  build  their  City  at  St  Ann's,  and  fortify  that 
Harbour,  or  build  and  fortify  where  Louisbourg  now  stands. 
I  thought  it  my  duty  to  mention  this  fact  to  your  Grace 
as  I  likewise  do  to  observe  to  your  Grace  that  the  French 
Fort  at  Crown  Point  (as  the  English  call  it  and  the  French 
Fort  de  Chevalier)  which  has  been  during  this  War  a  very 
great  Annoyance  to  his  Majesty's  Northern  Colonies  as 
far  as  New  York,  being  the  Place  of  Rendezvous  from  whence 
the  Indians  make  their  Incursions,  and  a  sure  Retreat  to  them 
after  committing  their  Murders  and  Devastations,  and  a 
cover  to  the  French  Settlemts  of  Canada,  as  it  commands  the 
Lake  Champlain  as  far  as  Fort  Chamblee  within  sixteen  miles 
from  Montreal,  is  a  late  Incroachmt  made  by  the  French 
upon  his  Majesty's  Colonies  within  these  last  fourteen 
years,  the  Point  on  which  the  Fort  is  built  being  plainly  in 
the  English  Territories,  and  included  within  the  Patent  of 
King  James  the  first  to  the  Council  of  Plimouth  (which 
grants  all  the  Lands  from  the  Atlantick  Ocean  to  the  South 
Sea  between  the  Latitudes  of  forty  and  forty  eight  degrees 
North)  lying  in  the  Latitude  of  about  forty  five,  and  having 

340 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ever  been  reputed  so  to  this  day,  tho  by  an  inexcusable 
Inactivity  of  the  Governmts  of  New  York  and  New  Eng- 
land the  Fort  was  suffer'd  to  be  built  by  the  French. 

I  take  the  liberty  in  behalf  of  the  Colonies  to  intreat 
your  Grace  that  in  case  this  Fort  should  not  be  reduc'd 
by  his  Majesty's  Arms,  before  a  Treaty  of  Peace  shall 
be  set  on  foot,  that  it  may  be  recommended  to  his  Majesty 
as  a  Matter  of  very  great  Consequence  to  the  Welfare  of 
his  Colonies  here,  that  that  Fort  should  be  insisted  upon 
being  given  up  by  the  French,  and  garrison'd  by  the  English  ; 
and  that  the  English  Limits  on  that  Side  may  be  settled 
to  be  a  Line  running  from  East  to  West  in  the  Latitude  of 
forty  eight  as  above,  as  it  of  right  ought  to  be.  Such  a 
settlemt  upon  a  Peace  would  certainly  be  greatly  for  his 
Majesty's  Service,  and  give  general  Satisfaction  to  his 
Colonies,  and  I  cannot  think  the  maintaining  of  this  In- 
croachmt  is  a  matter  that  will  be  so  considerable  in  the  Eyes 
of  the  Court  of  Versailles  that  they  will  think  it  worth  their 
while  to  put  a  Stop  to  the  Negotiations  for  a  Peace  on  that 
Account,  though  it's  certainly  a  matter  of  very  great  Con- 
sequence to  the  British  Colonies. 

I  am  with  the  most  dutiful  Regard, 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Devoted 

and  most  Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley.* 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 
Endorsed: 

Boston  Augt  24.  1746. 
Govr  Shirley. 
9  Deer  17. 

^  It  is  worthy  of  notice  that  at  this  period  the  region  of  the 
lakes  and  of  Crown  Point  was  the  strip  of  territory  which  Shirley 
considered  necessary  for  Colonial  safety.  His  plan  of  campaign  in 
1755  but  renewed  this  emphasis. 


341 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

PETER  WARREN  AND  WILLIAM   SHIRLEY 
TOBENNING  WENTWORTH^ 

Boston,  August  25,  1746. 
S1R5 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  having  by  his 
Majesty's  Command,  in  his  letter  of  the  9th  of  last  April, 
signify'd  to  Mr  Shirley  that  if  Lieutenant  General  St  Clair 
and  we  shall  think  that  any  other  scheme  than  that  which  is 
contain'd  in  his  Grace's  said  letter  for  the  reduction  of  Canada 
may  be  more  practicable  and  advisable,  it  will  certainly  be 
left  to  us  three  to  do  as  we  shall  think  proper.  We  have 
accordingly  in  the  absence  of  Lieut  General  St  Clair  (and  as 
the  major  part  of  those  in  whom  his  Majesty  reposes  this 
trust)  from  time  to  time,  as  we  have  judged  it  necessary 
for  promoting  his  Majesty's  service,  concerted  measures 
for  the  better  conducting  of  the  preparations  for  this  im- 
portant enterprize. 

And  whereas  it  appears  to  us,  from  the  accounts  we  have 
received  of  the  levies  raised  within  his  Majesty's  several 
governments  engaged  in  this  expedition,  that  those  rais'd 
within  the  four  colonies  of  New  England  do  not  exceed 
5000  at  the  most,  nor  those  within  the  five  Southern  Col- 
onies 2100,  which  troops,  together  with  the  six  regiments 
expected  from  England  and  the  two  lately  arriv'd  at  Louis- 
bourg  from  Gibraltar,  will  not,  as  we  conceive,  be  a  suffi- 
cient land  force  for  the  reduction  of  the  whole  country  of 
Canada,  though  the  squadron  of  his  Majesty's  ships  and 
transports  appointed  for  the  service  of  the  expedition  should 
arrive  at  Louisbourg  in  time  for  proceeding  this  year  up  the 
River  of  St  Lawrence,  and  carrying  on  afterwards  the  nec- 
essary operations  against  Quebec,  which  from  the  advanc'd 

^  Printed :  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  482.  Similar  letters 
to  Governor  Greene  of  Rhode  Island  and  to  Governor  Law  of 
Connecticut  are  printed ;  Kimball,  Corres.  R.  I.  Governors,  2, 
p.  3,  and  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  13,  288.  The  replies  of  Joseph 
Whipple,  Deputy  Governor  of  Rhode  Island  (Aug.  29),  and  of 
Law  (Sept.  2)  are  in  the  same  volumes. 

342 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

season  of  the  year,  and  our  not  having  yet  receiv'd  advice 
of  their  being  on  their  passage,  we  are  very  apprehensive 
they  most  probably  will  not.^  And  whereas  we  are  of 
opinion  that  the  beforemention'd  American  troops  together 
with  the  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations,  which  it  is  hop'd  will 
join  with  his  Majesty's  troops  in  this  expedition,  may  if 
they  should  act  in  conjunction  against  the  French  fort  at 
Crown  Point  be  a  sufficient  force  for  the  reduction  of  it,  even 
though  no  diversion  should  be  made  at  Quebeck  to  favour 
this  enterprize  by  a  land  armament,  provided  it  is  attempted 
without  delay ;  and  it  appears  to  us  that  this  fort  being  the 
Key  of  Canada  on  the  landside  and  the  place  of  rendezvous, 
from  whence  the  enemy  not  only  may  make  incursions  upon 
most  of  his  Majesty's  colonies,  and  have  begun  already  to 
commit  great  devastations,  but  very  much  annoy  that  part 
of  his  Majesty's  land  forces,  which,  according  to  the  plan 
of  operations  for  this  expedition  transmitted  to  Mr  Shirley 
in  the  Duke  of  Newcastle's  letter,  is  design'd  to  penetrate 
into  Canada  from  Albany  by  land  (if  it  should  be  left  on 
their  backs  in  the  possession  of  the  enemy)  the  reducton 
and  garrisoning  of  it  by  his  Majesty's  forces  would  not  only 
be  a  protection  to  the  English  settlements  on  the  frontier 
during  the  expedition,  but  open  a  more  safe  passage  into  the 
enemy's  country  for  his  Majesty's  forces,  be  a  commodious 
magazine  to  'em  for  stores  and  provisions,  and  by  making 
us  masters  of  the  Lake  Champlain  with  the  passes,  defiles, 
and  carrying  places  as  far  as  the  fort  at  Chamblee,  within  six- 
teen miles  of  Montreal,  afford  an  easy  transportation  of 
provisions  and  succours  for  the  support  of  the  expedition, 
prevent  the  enemy  from  discovering  our  motions  on  that 

^  A  letter  of  much  the  same  tenor  as  this  was  sent  by  Shirley  to 
Newcastle  Aug.  22  (C.  O.  5,  901,  p.  26).  In  It  Shirley  summarizes 
the  preparations  made  for  the  Canadian  expedition,  the  desire 
of  the  French  to  win  over  the  Iroquois,  and  the  number  of  troops 
raised  by  the  northern  and  the  southern  colonies.  A  five  hundred 
word  list  of  the  fighting  men  in  the  northern  colonies  Is  Inclosed, 
and  having  declared  that  the  season  is  too  late  for  the  proposed 
attack  on  Quebec,  Shirley  suggests  a  movement  against  Crown 
Point. 

343 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

side,  and  put  it  into  our  power  to  make  sudden  descents  on 
them,  all  which  would  be  the  most  effectual  means  of  con- 
firming the  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations  most  strongly  in  his 
Majesty's  interest,  and  very  probably  draw  over  to  it  some 
of  the  tribes  now  in  the  French  interest,  or  at  least  bring  'em 
into  a  state  of  neutrality  between  his  Majesty's  subjects  and 
the  French,  and  would  through  the  blessing  of  the  Divine 
Providence  on  his  Majesty's  arms  very  much  facilitate  the 
conquest  of  the  whole  country  of  Canada  the  next  year,  if  his 
Majesty  should  then  be  graciously  pleas'd  to  send  early 
in  the  spring  such  a  naval  and  land  force  to  proceed  up  the 
River  St  Lawrence  as  he  shall  judge  sufficient,  with  the 
assistance  of  the  troops  rais'd  in  America,  for  the  reduction  of 
Quebeck  and  Montreal  (as  we  have  the  strongest  reason  to 
hope  he  will),  and  in  the  mean  time  succours  are  prevented 
from  being  introduc'd  by  sea  into  Quebec.  And  whereas 
we  are  perswaded  on  the  other  hand  an  unsuccessful  attempt 
both  by  sea  and  land  this  year  for  the  reduction  of  the  whole 
country  (which  we  apprehend,  from  the  lateness  of  the  sea- 
son and  the  weakness  of  the  forces  rais'd  in  the  five  South- 
ern Colonies  that  must  in  such  case  march  from  Albany 
into  the  enemy's  country  by  themselves,  there  is  reason  to 
fear  might  be  the  case,  especially  if  the  fort  at  Crown  Point 
is  not  first  reduc'd)  would  be  attended  with  the  immediate 
loss  of  the  Six  Nations  to  his  Majesty's  service,  and  unite  all 
the  Indians  most  firmly  in  the  French  interest,  prove  fatal 
to  the  expedition,  and  afterwards  produce  very  bad  conse- 
quences to  all  his  Majesty's  Northern  Colonies. 

We  therefore,  conceiving  it  our  indispensable  duty  in  the 
absence  of  Lieut  General  St  Clair  to  execute  the  trust  re- 
pos'd  in  him  and  us  by  his  Majesty  in  such  manner  as  we  two 
shall  judge  to  be  most  for  his  Majesty's  service  and  the  in- 
terest of  his  Northern  Colonies  upon  this  occasion,  and  ap- 
prehending that  the  joining  of  all  the  American  forces  now 
rais'd  in  the  reduction  of  Crown  Point,  in  case  we  don't  very 
suddenly  hear  of  the  arrival  of  the  fleet  and  British  troops 
at  Louisbourg,  nor  receive  other  instruction  from  his  Majesty, 
will  not  only  facilitate  the  conquest  of  the  whole  country 

344 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  Canada  the  next  year,  but  is  conformable  to  the  scheme  of 
the  intended  expedition  as  the  same  has  been  communicated 
in  the  Duke  of  Newcastle's  letter,  and  is  indeed  the  only- 
part  of  it  that  is  hkely  to  be  practicable  this  year,  have  com- 
municated our  sentiments  to  your  Excellency,  which  are 
very  much  founded  upon  the  report  made  to  us  on  several 
points  which  we  refer'd  to  the  consideration  of  Colonel 
Stoddard  and  Colo.  Atkinson  for  their  opinion,  the  latter  of 
which  gentlemen  had  a  commission  from  you  to  consult 
and  agree  with  us  on  behalf  of  your  government,  so  that  we 
doubt  not  of  your  Excellency's  concurrence  with  us  in  this 
case  for  his  Majesty's  service  and  the  general  interest  of  the 
Colonies,  and  desire  that  your  troops  may  receive  orders 
from  you  to  hold  themselves  in  readiness  to  proceed  upon 
the  first  notice  to  Albany,  where  we  shall  recommend  it  also 
to  the  governments  of  Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island  to  send 
their  troops  upon  the  same  service,  in  case  we  shall  not  very 
suddenly  receive  instructions  from  his  Majesty  which  may 
interfere  with  this  design. 

We  have  signify'd  this  our  opinion  to  Governor  Clinton  by 
express  sent  to  Albany,  and  desir'd  him  to  get  a  proper 
train  of  artillery  transported  to  the  nearest  place  of  ren- 
dezvous from  Crown  Point  without  delay,  to  be  ready  for 
the  execution  of  this  scheme,  and  to  acquaint  the  officers  of 
the  forces  of  the  other  southern  governments  with  what  we 
propose. 

Mr.  Shirley  will  order  what  ordnance  stores  he  can  from 
this  Province  which  are  not  to  be  procur'd  in  the  other 
governmts,  and  we  must  desire  that  your  Excellency  will 
provide  your  proportion  of  powder  upon  this  occasion. 
We  are  with  great  regard.  Sir, 

Your  Excelly's  most  obedient  humble  servants. 

P.  Warren.        W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy.  Govr.  Wentworth. 


345 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM   SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY    TO   THE    GENERAL    COURT 
OF   MASSACHUSETTS  1 

Gentlemen    of   the    Council   and     House    of   Repre- 

SENTVES, 

I  was  concern'd  at  your  rising  last  week  without 
coming  to  any  determination  upon  my  message  to  you 
concerning  the  impending  danger  which  his  Majesty's 
Province  of  Nova  Scotia  is  in  of  being  lost  to  the  Enemy. 
The  prevention  of  so  fatal  an  evil  is  a  matter  which  in  my 
Opinion  demands  the  most  speedy  care,  and  I  must  press 
you  to  give  an  immediate  and  close  attention  to  it ;  and  I 
think  proper  to  add  to  my  former  Message  upon  that  sub- 
ject that  when  at  the  beginning  of  this  present  Meeting  of 
the  Court  I  communicated  to  you  Mr  Warren's  and  my  senti- 
ments concerning  the  employment  of  the  soldiers  rais'd 
in  this  Province  and  the  three  other  colonies  of  New  England 
for  the  intended  expedition  against  Canada,  in  conjunction 
with  the  forces  raised  within  the  five  Southern  Colonies,  in 
an  immediate  attempt  for  the  reduction  of  the  French  fort 
at  Crown  Point,  I  was  not  apprised  of  the  dangerous  situ- 
ation of  affairs  in  Nova  Scotia,  But  now  from  the  advices 
transmitted  from  Lieut.  Governr.  Mascarene  (which  are 
further  confirmed  to  me  by  letters  from  Officers  of  the 
Garrison  at  Annapolis  Royal,  with  this  additional  circum- 
stance that  thirty  French  Officers  are  landed  about  Menis 
with  the  Chevalier  de  Ramsey,  an  officer  of  distinction  from 
Canada,  who  is  said  to  have  the  chief  command)  compar'd 
with  the  Nova  Scotians  stopping  all  communication  with 
the  Garrisons,  the  detaining  of  all  the  Messengers  lately 
sent  by  Mr  Mascarene  for  intelligence,  the  hostile  re- 
ception which  the  vessell  which  he  sent  up  the  Bay  for  the 
same  purpose,  together  with  the  numerous  fires  made  on 
shoar  (upon  its  appearance)  to  alarm  the  country ;  the  ac- 
counts which  I  had  before  received  from  Louisbourg  that 
several  French  transports  were  gone  to  Bay  Verte  ;  and  from 

^  Original,  Mass.  Arch.,  Court  Records,  17,  5,  p.  595. 

346 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

masters  of  vessells  that  two  large  French  ships  were  seen  to 
go  into  Chebucto  Harbour;  I  say  from  these  concurring 
circumstances  there  can  be  no  room  to  doubt  but  that  a 
body  of  Canadeans  and  Indians  is  now  actually  assembled 
at  Menis  or  some  other  parts  of  Nova  Scotia  with  a  design 
to  make  a  sudden  attempt  for  the  reduction  of  it ;  and  as 
the  enemy's  making  themselves  masters  of  that  Province 
is  evidently  the  most  practicable  method  (I  think  I  might 
venture  to  say  the  only  probable  one)  for  the  French  to 
recover  Cape  Breton  in,  either  by  open  force  or  (if  that 
should  not  be  thought  advisable  to  attempt)  by  possessing 
themselves  of  an  equivalent  for  it,  we  have  still  stronger 
reason  to  be  perswaded  of  the  reality  of  the  enemy's  now 
meditating  such  an  attempt;  as  to  their  numbers  actually 
landed  in  Nova  Scotia  from  the  appearance  of  their  fires 
and  other  accounts,  we  may  probably  suppose  'em  to  be  up- 
wards of  looo  men,  especially  as  it  is  certain  that  they  had 
besieg'd  his  Majesty's  garrison  at  Annapolis  Royal  with 
about  iioo  men  early  in  the  spring  before  last,  and  remained 
there  till  they  broke  up  and  dispers'd  upon  the  arrival  of  our 
troops  before  Louisbourg. 

Gentlemen,  The  danger  which  these  motions  of  the  enemy 
threaten  us  with  will  arise  not  from  their  present  number, 
but  our  suffering  'em  to  continue  in  the  province  of  Nova 
Scotia  till  they  have  gained  over  the  French  inhabitants 
(already  ripe  for  a  revolt)  to  join  with  'em  in  attacking  his 
Majesty's  garrison,  which  may  yet  be  prevented  (as  it  has 
already  most  happily  been  twice  before  upon  the  appearance 
of  succours  from  this  government)  by  seasonably  sending 
a  sufficient  strength  of  his  Majesty's  troops  intended  for 
the  expedition  against  Canada  to  Annapolis  Royal  to  drive 
the  Canadeans  ought  [out  ?]  of  Nova  Scotia,  which  seems 
not  difficult  to  be  done  at  present.  But  if  they  are  per- 
mitted to  winter  there  that  will  afford  'em  time  to  trans- 
port their  artillery  and  stores  (which  we  may  reasonably  sup- 
pose they  came  supplyed  with  and  have  introduced  into  the 
province  by  way  of  Bay  Verte)  to  Annapolis,  for  doing 
which   I   have   certain   information   that   there   is   an   easy 

347  ^ 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

road  by  land  from  Menis  to  that  part  of  the  province,  sup- 
posing they  have  no  way  of  doing  great  part  of  it  by  water 
carriage,  which  very  possibly  they  may.  This  would  also 
give  'em  time  to  fortify  some  part  of  the  country,  and  effectu- 
ally to  work  upon  and  bring  the  inhabitants  to  an  actual  re- 
volt, who  upon  seeing  the  enemy  masters  of  a  proper  train  of 
artillery,  and  that  they  had  made  the  necessary  dispositions 
for  a  general  attack  upon  the  garrison,  most  likely  at  a  sea- 
son of  the  year  when  it  might  be  impracticable  or  extreamly 
difficult  for  succors  to  be  sent  'em,  either  from  the  colonies 
or  from  Louisbourg,  would  it  [is]  justly  to  be  feared  most 
readily  join  the  enemy. 

What  the  consequence  of  the  loss  of  this  province  would  be 
are  so  obvious  that  I  need  but  barely  mention  'em  to  you. 
The  French  by  making  this  acquisition  would  gain  an  ad- 
ditional tract  of  territory  upon  this  continent  nearly  as  large 
as  Ireland  settled  with  about  30,000  inhabitants,  all  French 
Roman  Catholicks,  among  whom  are  reckoned  to  be  near 
6,000  fighting  men  well  acquainted  with  our  eastern  coast 
and  harbours,  besides  a  considerable  body  of  the  Cape  Sables, 
St  Johns  and  other  neighbouring  Indians,  by  which  augmen- 
tation of  their  strength  they  would  be  immediately  enabled 
to  break  up  all  our  settlements  in  the  late  province  of  Maine 
and  probably  the  whole  province  of  New  Hampshire,  and  with 
them  would  be  lost  to  his  Majesty  that  part  of  the  mast 
country  in  America  from  whence  are  at  present  wholly 
drawn  the  supplies  of  masts,  yards,  &c.  for  the  royal  navy. 
This  event  would  be  also  instantly  attended  with  the  loss 
of  the  fishery  upon  the  Cape  Sable  shoar,  would  animate  all 
the  Indians  now  in  the  French  interest  and  redouble  their 
rage  and  fury  against  us,  and  would  most  probably  weaken  our 
present  influence  over  the  Six  Nations,  if  not  occasion  their 
going  over  to  the  enemy.  The  addition  of  the  inhabitants  of 
Nova  Scotia  to  the  French  would  likewise  greatly  strengthen 
'em  against  the  intended  expedition  for  the  reduction  of 
Canada ;  and  to  say  no  more,  this  fatal  event  would  in- 
volve the  colonies  of  New  England  in  such  endless  difficul- 
ties and  confusion  that  the  best  they  could  hope  for  in  case 

348 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

they  could  not  recover  Nova  Scotia  from  the  enemy  seems 
to  be  that  his  Majesty  would  be  graciously  pleased  to  save 
'em  by  giving  up  Cape  Breton  in  exchange  for  it,  tho  it  may 
well  be  made  a  question  whether  the  French  would  agree  to 
such  an  exchange,  and  not  rather  take  their  chance  for  the 
recovery  of  that  island  in  the  course  of  the  war,  which  their 
acquisition  of  Nova  Scotia  would  so  much  facilitate  to  'em. 

You  must  be  sensible,  gentlemen,  that  this  alteration  of 
the  face  of  affairs  after  my  first  message  to  you  since  this 
meeting  of  the  Court  will  necessarily  occasion  some  altera- 
tion of  the  measures  proposed  in  it,  and  that  his  Majesty  will 
certainly  expect  that  a  suitable  number  of  the  troops  now  in 
his  pay  and  arm'd  and  cloathed  by  him  should  be  employed 
for  the  immediate  protection  of  his  province  of  Nova  Scotia 
from  the  present  danger  it  is  exposed  to ;  a  province  which 
the  Crown  has  been  at  so  great  an  expence  to  maintain  the 
possession  of  ever  since  the  reduction  of  it,  merely  as  a  barrier 
to  his  other  Northern  Colonies,  particularly  those  of  New 
England,  against  the  French,  and  the  preservation  of  which 
in  a  most  especial  manner  is  so  essential  to  the  safety  of  this 
province  and  that  of  New  Hampshire,  and  that  I  am  obliged 
both  by  my  duty  to  his  Majesty  and  my  regard  to  the  welfare 
of  the  province  to  take  care  that  Nova  Scotia  is  properly 
protected. 

Gentlemen :  I  have  not  altered  my  sentiments  concerning 
the  importance  of  the  reduction  of  the  French  fort  at  Crown 
Point,  and  have  the  carrying  of  that  attempt  on  at  heart  as 
much  as  ever.  I  hope  the  levies  raised  in  all  the  colonies  con- 
cern'd  in  the  intended  expedition  may  be  sufficient  to  answer 
both  services.  But  that  for  the  preservation  of  the  province 
of  Nova  Scotia  must  be  effectually  attended  at  all  events. 

You  will  see  the  sentiments  of  the  Council  of  New  York 
concerning  the  numbers  requisite  for  effecting  the  reduc- 
tion of  Crown  Point,  and  by  Col.  Stoddard's  letter  what  sea- 
son he  judges  best  for  attempting  it,  with  the  reasons  for 
supporting  his  opinion,  which  seem  very  strong. 

W.  Shirley. 
Council  Chamber,  9  Septr,  1746. 

349 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

MASSACHUSETTS    GENERAL    COURT   TO 
WILLIAM  SHIRLEY! 

May  it  please  your  Excellency, 

The  exposed  and  hazardous  condition  of  the  province  of 
Nova  Scotia  has  been  duly  considered  by  the  two  Houses. 

It  is  very  evident  that  the  preservation  of  that  country 
is  of  great  importance  to  his  Majesty's  interest;  but  the 
circumstances  of  the  people  of  this  Province  are  such  that 
it  is  not  possible  for  them  to  be  at  any  further  expence  at 
this  time,  so  much  of  their  substance  being  exhausted  by 
the  late  expedition,  the  levies  for  Canada,  and  the  defence  of 
the  frontiers,  besides  so  many  men  have  been  lost  at  Louis- 
bourg  and  since  our  troops  returned  from  thence,  and  by  the 
seamen  that  have  been  impressed  on  board  his  Majesty's 
ships  of  war,  that  there  are  scarce  enough  left  to  resist 
the  attacks  made  by  the  French  and  Indian  enemy.  And  it 
would  not  have  been  safe  for  so  great  a  force  as  has  been 
raised  for  the  expedition  to  Canada  to  have  left  the  Province 
only,  as  it  was  hoped  this  would  be  a  means  of  removing  the 
enemy  from  our  own  borders.  But  notwithstanding,  if  your 
Excellency  is  of  opinion  that  it  will  be  for  his  Majesty's 
service  to  employ  any  of  the  troops  enlisted  for  the  expedi- 
tion to  Canada  for  the  defence  of  Annapolis  (there  being 
no  doubt  but  this  service  will  be  preferred  by  many  of  the 
men  to  that  of  the  expedition  to  Crown  Point),  the  two 
Houses  have  no  exception,  provided  there  be  fifteen  hundred 
of  said  troops  employed  for  the  expedition  to  Crown  Point, 
and  your  Excellency  can  give  assurance  that  none  shall  be 
compelled  nor  allowed  to  remain  in  garrison  at  Nova  Scotia 
or  as  a  standing  force  for  the  protection  thereof;  and  that 
no  part  of  the  pay,  subsistence,  nor  charge  of  transporting 
them  shall  lay  upon  the  Province. 

In  the  name  and  byorderof  the  Council.  J.  Willard,  Secry. 

In  the  name  and  by  order  of  the  House. 

T.  Hutchinson,  Spkr. 

!  This  address  was  adopted  by  the  House  Sept.  lo,  1746  (House 
Journal,  1746,  135).     See  Mass.  Arch.,  CqvlvX  Rec.  17,  5,  602. 

350 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

PETER  WARREN  AND  WILLIAM    SHIRLEY 
TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH » 

Boston,  Septemr  12,  1746. 
Sir, 

Advice  Is  arrlv'd  here  from  Mr  Mascarene  that  a  consider- 
able body  of  French  and  Indians  from  Canada  Is  assembled 
at  Menis,  and  that  if  they  don't  make  an  immediate  attempt 
upon  the  garrison  there,  their  design  is  to  winter  1200  of 
those  forces  in  Menis,  whereby  they  will  have  an  opportunity 
of  fortifying  that  part  of  the  country,  transporting  a  train 
of  artillery  (which  we  have  great  reason  to  believe  they  have 
introduc'd  by  the  way  of  Bay  Verte)  from  thence  to  Annapolis 
Royal  and  of  bringing  the  inhabitants  (already  ripe  for  a  re- 
volt, and  among  which  are  computed  to  be  near  6,000  fighting 
men)  together  with  the  Cape  Sable  Indians  to  join  'em  in 
attacking  his  Majesty's  garrison  very  early  in  the  spring, 
before  the  season  would  admit  of  succours  being  sent  to  it. 

The  loss  of  his  Majesty's  province  of  Nova  Scotia  would  be 
an  event  so  fatal  to  his  service  in  every  respect  and  to  the  in- 
tended expedition  for  the  reduction  of  Canada  (if  that  should 
proceed  the  next  year)  in  particular,  as  the  enemy  by  means 
of  that  acquisition  would  augment  the  number  of  their 
fighting  men  very  considerably,  and  besides  enabling  them 
forthwith  to  break  up  the  late  Province  of  Maine,  and  very 
probably  the  whole  Province  of  New  Hampshire,  within 
which  limits  is  comprehended  all  the  mast  country  in  America 
(from  whence  his  Majesty  draws  at  present  the  whole  supply 
of  masts,  yards,  &ca,  for  his  royal  navy),  would  greatly 
endanger  the  safety  of  the  other  English  colonies  upon  this 
continent,  and  even  of  the  island  of  Cape  Breton  itself,  the 
recovery  of  which  would  be  facilitated  to  the  enemy  by  their 
possession  of  Nova  Scotia,  whether  they  should  attempt  it 
by  force  or  by  proposing  an  equivalent  for  it,  that  we  think 
it  adviseable  to  endeavour  to  drive  the  enemy  this  fall  out 
of  the  Province  of  Nova  Scotia,  if  possible,  and  in  the  mean 

^Printed:  6  Mass.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  10,  491. 

351 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

time  that  an  immediate  relnforcemt  should  be  sent  to  the 
garrison  to  prevent  any  sudden  surprize. 

Hereupon  Mr  Shirley  has  determined  to  send  no  more 
than  1500  of  the  Massachusetts  levies  upon  the  expedition 
to  Crown  Point,  and  to  employ  the  remainder  of  'em,  which 
Is  about  1000,  in  the  protection  of  Nova  Scotia,  vizt,  by 
forthwith  sending  300  men  to  Annapolis  Royal,  200  of  which 
for  the  relnforcemt  of  the  garrison  and  the  other  100  to  be  em- 
ployed in  two  sloops  In  the  Bay,  as  Mr  Mascarene  proposes  in 
his  Inclos'd  letter,  and  to  dispatch  the  remaining  700  to  An- 
napolis as  soon  after  as  Is  possible,  to  form,  in  conjunction  with 
the  levies  of  your  governmt.  which  you  shall  think  proper  to 
send  and  the  governmt.  of  Rhode  Island  (to  which  also  we  shall 
recommend  It)  upon  the  same  service,  a  sufficient  body  to  dis- 
lodge the  French  and  Indians  of  Canada,  and  prevent 'em  from 
wintering  In  any  part  of  Accadie,  which  would  be  attended 
with  the  utmost  hazard  to  the  safety  of  his  Majesty's  garrison 
at  Annapolis  Royal,  and  with  that  to  his  whole  Province  of 
Nova  Scotia,  the  loss  of  which  would  be  followed  with  the 
most  destructive  consequences  to  the  Interests  of  all  the 
colonies,  particularly  this  and  the  province  under  your  Ex- 
cellency's governmt  and  to  his  Majesty's  service  In  general. 

Your  Excellency  as  Governour  of  the  province  of  New 
Hampshire  and  Surveyor  General  of  his  Majesty's  Woods,  the 
preservation  of  which  and  of  the  estates  of  the  Inhabitants 
of  the  province  are  most  nearly  connected  with  his  Majesty's 
preserving  the  possession  of  Nova  Scotia,  will,  we  doubt 
not,  have  this  service  so  much  at  heart  that  we  need  only 
recommend  it  to  you  to  join  with  Mr.  Shirley  In  it  by  sending 
as  soon  as  may  be  all  the  levies  you  have  rais'd  within 
your  governmtfor  his  Majesty's  service  In  the  intended  expedi- 
tion against  Canada  to  Annapolis  Royal  for  the  protection  of 
Nova  Scotia  and  driving  off  the  enemy  from  Menis,  which 
we  are  in  hopes  may  be  done,  if  attempted  in  time,  seasonably 
for  the  troops  to  return  from  thence  within  two  months 
at  farthest  after  their  landing  at  Annapolis ;  and  we  are 
the  rather  induc'd  to  press  this  upon  your  Excy  as  we  are  in 
hopes  that  the  additional  strength  of  1500  of  the  Massa- 

352 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

chusetts  levies  and  the  lOOO  Connecticut  troops  to  those  rais'd 
in  the  five  Southern  colonies,  which  according  to  our  accounts 
may  be  computed  at  upwards  of  3000,  may  be  a  sufficient 
force  in  conjunction  with  the  Six  Nations  for  the  reduction 
of  the  fort  at  Crown  Point,  though  if  his  Majesty's  service  had 
not  demanded  such  a  part  of  his  New  Engld  troops  for  the 
protection  of  Nova  Scotia,  we  should  have  thought  it  advise- 
able  that  the  whole  of  'em  should  have  been  employed  in 
the  expedition  against  Crown  Point. 

As  to  the  appointmt  of  the  commanding  officer  for  the  ex- 
pedition against  Crown  Point,  which  you  inquir'd  after  in 
your  last  letter,  Mr  Clinton  by  his  express  from  Albany 
with  the  privity  (and  as  it  appears  to  us  with  the  approba- 
tion) of  his  Council  acquaints  us  that  he  thinks  it  will  be 
most  proper  that  we  should  appoint  the  gentleman  for  that 
command,  and  accordingly  desires  we  will  do  it,  and  we  have 
appointed  Brigadier  Waldo  as  a  gentleman  whose  rank,  serv- 
ices upon  the  expedition  against  Cape  Breton,  and  capacity 
to  serve  his  Majesty  in  the  chief  command  upon  the  present 
expedition,  we  are  perswaded,  clearly  entitle  him  to  it.  The 
method  we  propose  for  investing  the  officer  whom  we  nominate 
with  that  command  is  that  the  Governors  of  the  several  Colo- 
nies should  order  the  officers  appointed  by  themselves  to  pay 
due  obedience  to  Brigr  Waldo's  orders  as  commanding  officer, 
which  we  hope  may  be  agreeable  to  your  Excellency.  Mr 
Waldo  being  not  yet  come  from  the  Eastward  (though  hourly 
expected)  we  are  not  certain  that  he  will  accept  the  command, 
though  we  have  no  great  doubt  about  it.  As  to  the  chief  com- 
mand of  the  troops  which  shall  go  to  Nova  Scotia,  we  shall 
endeavour  to  do  everything  that  may  be  agreeable  to  your 
Excy.  in  that  respect,  in  case  you  think  fit  to  send  any  troops 
there,  as  we  hope  and  depend  upon  it  you  will,  espeially  if 
Colo.  Atkinson  goes  there.     We  are  with  great  regard.  Sir, 

Your  Excellency's  most  obedient  humble  servants. 

P.  Warren.        W.  Shirley. 

We  hope  for  the  favour  of  an  answer  by  the  express. 
His  Excellency  Governour  Wentworth. 
VOL.  I  —  2  A  353 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  PAUL  MASCARENEi 

Sir, 

Having  been  inform'd  that  the  French  Inhabitants  of 
Nova  Scotia  entertain  some  Jealousy  of  a  Design  in  the 
English  Government  to  remove  them  with  their  Families 
from  their  Settlements,  and  to  transport  them  to  France 
or  elsewhere ;  I  desire  (if  you  think  it  may  be  for  his 
Majesty's  Service)  that  you  would  be  pleas'd  to  signify  to 
'em,  that  it  is  probable  if  his  Majesty  had  declar'd  such 
Intention  I  might  have  heard  of  the  same,  but  that  I  am 
perfectly  unacquainted  with  any  such  Design,  and  am 
perswaded  there  is  no  just  Ground  for  this  Jealousy ;  And 
be  pleas'd  to  assure  'em  that  I  shall  use  my  best  Endeavours 
by  a  proper  Representation  of  their  Case  to  be  laid  before 
his  Majesty,  to  obtain  the  Continuance  of  his  Royal  Favour 
and  Protection  to  such  of  them,  as  shall  behave  dutifully 
and  peaceably,  and  refuse  to  hold  any  Correspondence  with 
his  Enemies  ;  and  I  doubt  not  but  that  all  such  of  'em  will  be 
protected  by  his  Majesty  in  the  Possession  of  their  Estates 
and  Settlements  in  Nova  Scotia. 

And  I  desire  you  would  also  be  pleas'd  to  inform  them  that 
it  is  expected  from  his  Majesty's  French  Subjects  in  that 
Province,  who  have  for  so  long  time  enjoyed  the  same  Privi- 
leges with  his  natural  born  Subjects  there,  and  have  been 
under  a  much  easier  Government  than  any  of  the  French 
King's  Subjects  are  in  the  neighbouring  Province  of  Canada 
and  other  Parts  of  the  French  King's  Dominions,  that  their 
Interest  as  well  as  their  Duty  and  Gratitude  should  bind 
them  to  a  strict  Fidelity  and  Obedience  to  his  Majesty  and 
His  Government.  But  on  the  contrary  if  any  of  the  Inhabit- 
ants of  the  said  Province  shall  join  with  the  Enemy  (es- 
pecially those  that  have  been  sent  from  Canada  to  seduce 
them  from  their  Duty  to  his  Majesty  and  Attachment  to 
the  English  Interest)  they  must  expect  to  be  treated  in  the 

^P.R.O.,C.  0.5,901,  p.  32. 

354 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

same  manner  as  his  Majesty's  English  Subjects  would  be 
under  the  like  Provocations. 

I  am  with  great  regard 
Sir, 

Your  most  Obedient 
humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Boston,  Sepr  i6,  1746. 

Copy  endorsed: 

Letter  to  Lt.  Colonel  Mascarene  to  be  Dispers'd  among 
the  French  Inhabitants  of  Nova  Scotia. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH^ 

Sir, 

I  now  send  to  your  Excellency  two  several  Declarations 
taken  upon  Oath  relating  to  the  Ships  discovered  near  the 
Coast  of  Nova  Scotia,  which  being  joined  with  the  Informa- 
tion of  Capt.  Thornton  taken  before  your  Excellency  make  it 
more  evident  that  they  are  a  French  Squadron  :  And  there- 
fore I  am  now  putting  the  Maritime  Parts  of  this  Province 
into  a  Posture  of  Defence,  that  so  we  may  be  ready  to  receive 
the  Enemy  if  they  should  come  this  Way. 

Your  Excellency's  most  obedient 
Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Boston,  Septemr.  20,  1746. 

Sept.  21.     I  have  this  Day  received  two  further  Accounts 
of  the  Strength  of  the  Enemy  which  I  inclose. 
His  Excellency  Governour  Wentworth. 

^  Original,  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61  C, 
p.  76. 


3SS 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

PETER  WARREN  AND  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 
TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH^ 

Boston,  Septemr.  23,  1746. 
Sir, 

We  are  favour'd  with  your  Excellency's  Express  ;  in  answer 
to  which  we  think  the  Caution  us'd  by  your  Assembly  in 
avoiding  to  Express  in  their  Vote  upon  what  part  of  His 
Majesty's  Service,  they  desir'd  the  600  Men,  for  whom  they 
granted  Subsistence  should  be  employed,  out  of  an  apprehen- 
sion that  might  have  Subjected  'em  to  the  Payment  of 
the  Troops,  was  quite  unnecessary;  but  we  are  of  your 
Opinion  that  the  Vote  stands  as  well  as  you  could  wish. 

We  are  perfectly  sensible  of  the  Fatigue  and  Trouble,  which 
the  narrow  Limits  of  the  power  of  His  Majesty's  Governours 
upon  such  Emergencies  as  the  present  must  occasion  to  you 
and  the  other  Gentlemen  in  like  Stations,  and  of  what  dis- 
advantage it  is  to  His  Majesty's  Service,  and  should  be  glad 
to  Contribute  by  Representations,  and  every  other  way  in 
our  power  towards  removing  this  Obstacle,  when  an  Oppor- 
tunity shall  present  itself. 

As  to  your  Proposal  that  we  should  give  you  Orders  for 
providing  Arms  and  Cloathing  for  your  Troops,  and  to  pre- 
scribe to  you  the  Method  of  payment  for  them ;  We  would 
Acquaint  you  that  Mr  Warren  has  never  yet  undertook  to 
give  any  Orders  about  Cloathing  and  Arms,  or  the  Method 
of  paying  for  them,  nor  I  for  any  other  Forces  but  those 
of  this  Province,  apprehending  that  by  the  Duke  of  New- 
castle's  circular  Letter  every  Governour  is  in  the  absence  of 
General  St  Clair  clearly  qualifyed  and  impowered  to  draw 
for  the  payment  of  that  Charge  —  respecting  the  Troops  of 
his  government.  The  Method  Mr  Shirley  has  taken  about  the 
Value  of  the  Cloathing  and  Arms  is  to  make  out  a  Warrant 
to  some  skilful  persons  to  apprize  them  upon  Oath,  and  Set 
down  the  Rate  of  a  single  suit  of  cloaths  and  a  Set  of  Arms 

^  Original,  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
C,  p.  1"].     The  underlining  is  by  Wentworth. 

356 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

one  with  another,  and  then  he  appoints  others  to  Estimate 
the  Exchange  and  so  draws  upon  the  Lords  of  the  Treasury. 

We  inclose  your  Excellency  Copys  of  several  Depositions 
which  we  have  received  since  Thorntons  which  seem  to  put 
it  out  of  much  Doubt  that  the  Fleet  discovered  about 
Chebucto  is  a  French  one. 

You  will  easily  Imagine  from  the  Contents  of  Paine's 
Deposition  that  this  Province  is  very  busy  in  making  Prepa- 
rations for  the  reception  of  the  Enemy  in  case  they  should 
make  us  a  Visit ;  However  Mr  Shirley  is  determin'd  to  Send 
300  Men  to  Succour  Annapolis  Royal,  100  of  which  are 
already  Sail'd,  and  150  more  of  'em  will  Sail  by  this  After- 
noon, and  the  remaining  50  follow  directly.  And  if  your  Ex- 
cellency sends  for  the  present  200  of  your  Troops  there 
forthwith  with  one  at  least  of  your  Arm'd  Vessels  which  we 
earnestly  recommend  to  you  to  do,  it  will  be  a  full  Reinforce- 
ment to  the  Garrison  at  Annapolis,  and  maybe  the  Saving  of 
the  Province  by  Enabling  'em  to  hold  out  till  the  Arrival  of 
the  Troops  and  Squadron  from  England  which  we  have  the 
utmost  reason  to  Expect  most  speedily.  The  News  con- 
cerning that  you  have  in  the  Prints. 
We  are 

Sir, 

Your  Excellencys  most  obedient 
humble  Servants. 
P.  Warren.       W.  Shirley. 

His  Excellency  Benning  Wentworth  Esqr. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH » 

Boston,  Septr.  29,  1746. 
Sir, 

I  have  just  time  to  inclose  your  Excellency  Copies  of  the 
Intelligence  Mr  Warren  and  I  receiv'd  Yesterday  from  Louis- 

^  Original,    L.    S.,  Mass.    Hist.    Soc,    Belknap    Manuscripts, 
61  C,  p.  -]-]. 

357 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

bourg,  by  his  Majesty's  Sloop  Hind,  which  was  sent  Express 
with  'em.  The  Enemy  by  having  been  discover'd  about 
the  same  Place  for  near  twenty  days,  in  the  Track  where  the 
English  Fleet  maybe  expected  to  fall  in  with  the  Cape  Sable's 
Coast  in  their  Passage  to  Louisbourg,  seem  to  be  cruizing 
for  em ;  of  which  Mr  Warren  and  I  have  endeavour'd  to 
apprize  Admiral  Lestock  by  sending  four  Vessels  to  meet 
him  at  Sea  with  Dispatches,  informing  him  of  the  Situation 
of  the  French.^ 

I  am  in  haste  with  great  Truth  and  Regard 
Sir, 

Your  most  Obedient 
Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excellency  Govr  Wentworth. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  AND  PETER  WARREN 
TO  WILLIAM  GREENE  2 

Boston,  October  14th,  1746. 
Sir, 

Having  received  advices  of  the  great  Danger  that  the 
Fortress  of  Annapolis  Royal,  and  the  whole  Province  of 
Nova  Scotia  is  in  of  falling  into  the  Enemy's  hands,  unless 
succors  be  immediately  sent  from  the  Colonies  of  New  Eng- 
land, Mr.  Shirley  has  accordingly  sent  nearly  Three  hundred 
Soldiers  of  His  Majesty's  Troops  raised  here  for  the  Ex- 
pedition against  Canada,  and  is  sending  more  to  make 
up  his  Quota  of  Six  hundred  Men ;  and  we  expect  that 
Three    hundred    more    will    be    forthwith    sent    thither    by 

^  The  letter  of  Shirley  and  Warren  to  Lestock  is  printed  in 
Kimball,  Corres.  R.  I.  Governors,  2,  16,  and  in  Conn.  Hist.  Soc. 
Coll.  13,  320.  Daniel  Fones  in  the  Rhode  Island  sloop  Tartar  was 
detailed  by  Governor  Greene  to  carry  one  copy  of  the  letter, 
Kimball,  2,  21. 

2  Printed  :  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  192.  A  similar  letter  to  Governor 
Wentworth  is  in  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61  C, 
p.  78. 

3S8 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Governor  Wentworth :  And  as  the  preservation  of  this 
Province  is  of  the  utmost  Consequence  for  His  Majesty's 
interest  and  the  Security  and  prosperity  of  the  Colonies 
of  New  England,  he  will  justly  expect  that  at  least  the 
Troops  in  his  own  pay  be  employed  for  the  defence  of  that 
Country ;  and  therefore  we  must  earnestly  urge  Your 
Honour  without  loss  of  time  to  send  in  proper  Vessels  the 
Three  hundred  Men  raised  in  your  Government  for  the 
Expedition  against  Canada,  for  the  defence  of  Annapolis 
Royal  and  Nova  Scotia,  the  Danger  being  so  near,  and  the 
Season  of  the  year  so  far  advanced,  that  the  least  Delay 
may  prove  fatal. 

We  have  inclosed  an  extract  of  a  Letter  from  Lieut.  Gov. 
Mascarene  by  which  you  will  understand  how  he  proposes  to 
have  these  Succors  employed,  and  if  you  can  immediately 
procure  a  number  of  Whaleboats,  they  will  be  of  great 
Service. 

We  are,  Sir,  your  most  Obedient  Humble  Servants, 

P.  Warren, 
W.  Shirley. 
To  the  Honble  William  Greene. 

P.S.  The  loss  of  Annapolis  will  make  an  addition  of  Five 
or  Six  thousand  fighting  men  to  the  Strength  of  the  Enemy 
and  thereby  enable  them  to  make  further  Attempts  even 
upon  Louisbourg,  or  prevent  the  success  of  His  Majesty's 
arms  next  year  against  Canada  if  the  King  should  think  fit 
to  extend  them  to  make  that  Conquest. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  AND  PETER  WARREN 
TO  WILLIAM  GREENE ' 

Boston,  October  23  d,  1746. 
Sir, 

We  have  received  your  letter  by  Lieut.  Col.  Kinnicut,  and 
are  glad  that  your  government  has  shown  so  good  a  spirit, 

»  Printed :  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  195. 
359 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

by  cheerfully  promoting  a  service  of  such  importance,  as  the 
relief  of  Annapolis  Royal,  and  the  saving  of  it  from  falling 
into  the  enemy's  hands. 

Last  night  we  received  from  the  master  of  a  vessel,  that 
sailed  with  the  French  fleet,  from  Chebucto,  (which  place 
they  have  wholly  abandoned,)  such  an  account  of  the 
strength  and  good  condition  both  of  their  land  and  sea 
forces,  and  of  their  intention  to  sail  with  their  whole  body  to 
Annapolis  Royal,  as  stopped  our  proceedings  for  a  few  hours. 

But  this  afternoon,  upon  examining  the  captain  of  the 
English  flag  of  truce,  and  two  other  gentlemen,  of  good 
reputation,  who  were  taken  prisoners  by  the  French  sixteen 
days  before  their  arrival  at  Chebucto,  and  two  intelligent 
masters  of  vessels  that  were  likewise  prisoners,  all  of  whom 
sailed  with  the  fleet  from  Chebucto,  and  left  them  the  i6th 
instant,  by  which  the  state  of  the  fleet  appears  to  us  in  a  very 
different  light  from  what  it  was  at  first  represented  to  us ; 
so  that  we  have  reason  to  judge  that  they  are  in  a  very  weak 
condition,  and  are  gone  (at  least  the  bulk  of  them,)  to  France, 
or  the  West  Indies ;  and  thereupon  Governor  Shirley  is 
sending  the  remainder  of  his  recruits,  with  all  despatch,  and 
does  not  think  it  proper  to  stay  for  convoy,  as  all  the  rest  of 
his  troops  sailed  without,  and  are  safe  arrived  at  Annapolis.^ 

However,  the  first  mentioned  account  has  put  us  upon  that 
caution,  that  we  shall  send  away  to-morrow,  a  small  well 
sailing  vessel,  with  a  whaleboat  and  crew,  to  look  into  Annap- 
olis basin ;  and  if  they  find  none  of  the  enemy's  ships  there, 
to  go  up  to  the  fort,  and  get  what  intelligence  they  can  from 
the  Governor ;  but  if  the  enemy's  ships  are  in  Annapolis 
harbor,  to  come  back  immediately,  so  far  as  Passamaquoddy, 
to  inform  the  officers  of  the  troops  and  masters  of  the  trans- 
ports, whom  Governor  Shirley  will  order  to  stop  at  that  place 
for  advice,  and  to  proceed  to  Annapolis,  or  return  back  to 
Boston,  according  as  the  advice  shall  be ;  and  we  judge  it 
will  be  best  for  Your  Honor  to  take  the  same  method,  by 
ordering  your  vessels  to  stop  at  Passamaquoddy ;    and  we 

^  See  the  details  of  the  examinations  here  referred  to  In  Shirley's 
letter  to  Benning  Wentworth  following, 

360 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

shall  desire  Lieut.  Governor  Mascarene  to  send  one  of  the 
ordnance  tenders  to  that  place,  to  meet  your  vessels,  and 
wait  at  Passamaquoddy,  till  their  arrival ;  and  you  may 
depend  upon  it,  that  your  vessels  will  meet  with  advice  from 
Mr.  Mascarene,  at  Passamaquoddy,  if  the  navigation  to 
Annapolis  be  safe. 

As  to  what  you  mention,  referring  to  Governor  Shirley's 
giving  a  commission  to  Mr.  Kinnicut ;  he  cannot  see  the 
propriety  of  it  in  this  case ;  it  being  left  to  every  particular 
governor  to  dispose  of  the  commissions  over  their  own 
troops ;  however,  he  will  take  effectual  care  that  Col.  Kin- 
nicut shall  not  be  subjected  to  any  command  below  his  own 
rank  and  character. 

We  are,  with  great  regard.  Sir, 

Your  most  Obedient  Humble  Servants, 

W.  Shirley. 
P.  Warren. 
To  the  Hon.  William  Greene,  Esq. 

P.S.  Governor  Wentworth  informs  Mr.  Shirley,  he  sent 
two  hundred  soldiers  from  his  government  to  Annapolis,  last 
Sunday. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  ^ 

Boston,  October  25,  1746. 
Sir, 

Three  hours  ago  Your  Express  arriv'd  here  and  deliver'd 
me  your  Excellency's  Packet;  in  answer  to  which  I  send 
you  the  inclos'd  Examinations  of  Sanders,  Kennan  and  Deas, 
Brown,  Knight  and  Foster.  Sanders,  from  whom  Mare  and 
Garde  had,  I  suppose,  chiefly  their  information,  so  alarm'd 
us  here  with  his  Intelligence,  that  I  stopt  for  a  few  hours  the 
proceeding  of  the  350  Men,  which  I  was  upon  the  point  of 
dispatching  away  for  Annapolis  Royal ;  But  upon  the  Advices 
brought  by  Kennan  and  Deas  two  South  Carolina  Gentle- 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist,  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
C,  p.  83. 

361 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

men  of  very  good  Sense  and  Credit,  who  din'd  with  the 
French  Officers  every  day,  also  of  Brown  a  Master  of  a  Vessell 
of  much  understanding  and  modesty,  who  had  good  Oppor- 
tunities of  discovering  the  Strength,  Designs,  and  Motives 
of  the  Enemy's  proceedings,  Foster  a  plain  Intelligent  Master 
of  a  Fishing  Vessell,  and  Knight,  who  was  Mate  of  Sanders, 
all  which  was  confirm'd  by  Captn  Scott  of  Major  Genl  Fuller's 
Regiment,  who  commanded  the  Flagg  of  Truce  from  Louis- 
bourgand  is  arriv'd  here,  I  made  no  Doubt  but  that  the  French 
are  making  the  best  of  their  way  either  to  France  or  the  West 
Indies,  notwithstanding  Sander's  Declaration,  who  either 
has  been  impos'd  upon,  or  is  brib'd  by  the  French  to  propa- 
gate the  notion  of  their  being  gone  to  Annapolis  Royal ;  It  is 
certain  that  he  has  the  Character  in  Salem,  to  which  place  he 
belongs,  of  the  most  Lying  fellow  in  the  Country  and  was 
suspected  of  being  concern'd  in  the  money  making  Scheme. 
By  many  other  Circumstances,  which  I  Collected  from 
the  five  last  mention'd  Declarants,  besides  what  is  con- 
tained in  their  declarations,  and  particularly  from  Captn 
Scott,  who  is  a  Gentleman  much  to  be  depended  upon,  there 
can  be  no  room  to  doubt  but  that  the  French  fleet  was  most 
miserably  mann'd,  some  of  'em  with  not  above  a  Man  to  a 
Gunn,  and  those  sickly,  and  that  they  were  extremely  alarm'd 
by  the  Packets  from  me  and  Mr  Warren  design'd  for  Louis- 
bourg,  which  fell  into  their  hands  and  gave  Advice  of  Admiral 
Lestocks  being  expected  with  a  Strong  Squadron,  the  prints 
contain'd  in  'em  said  of  i8  Ships  of  the  Line  which  caus'd  'em 
to  embark  their  Troops  in  the  night,  and  to  make  a  precipi- 
tate departure  ;  And  their  carrying  the  Flag  of  Truce  with  'em 
as  far  as  thirty  leagues  west  of  Chebucto,  and  then  dismissing 
it,  with  the  English  prisoners  (that  were  ransom'd  by  the 
same  number  of  French  brought  from  Louisbourg)  whom 
they  labour'd  to  pursuade  that  they  were  bound  for  Annap- 
olis Royal  with  their  whole  Fleet ;  whereas  their  Circum- 
stances plainly  requir'd  'em  to  conceal  their  designs  with  the 
utmost  care,  and  to  carry  their  prisoners  with  'em  to  Annap- 
ohs  Royal,  instead  of  sending  'em  to  Louisbourg  and  Boston 
to  discover  their  Scheme,  if  they  were  really  bound  thither ;  I 

362 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

say  these  Circumstances  leave  no  room  to  doubt  here  but  that 
their  declarations  that  they  were  bound  for  Annapolis  Royal 
was  a  mere  f  einte,  and  that  they  were  even  afFraid  of  Admiral 
Townsend's  following  'em :  Besides,  the  Season  of  the  Year, 
and  their  certain  Intelligence  that  the  Garrison  at  Annapolis 
was  reinforc'd  from  hence,  and  to  be  farther  reinforc'd  from 
the  Colonies  are  farther  Circumstances,  which  make  the  thing 
Improbable.  And  now  to  confirm  my  Opinion,  Lieutent 
Gorham  is  arriv'd  here  with  Letters  dated  the  20th  instant 
from  Annapolis  and  saw  not  one  Ship  in  the  Bay  in  his  Pas- 
sage. As  to  their  taking  with  'em  the  Nova  Scotia  Pilots, 
that  might  be  for  their  greater  safety  upon  this  Coast,  or 
more  probably  to  go  with  'em  to  France  both  to  give  Intelli- 
gence there  of  the  State  of  the  province,  and  be  made  use  of 
next  Year  in  case  the  Scheme  against  Annapolis  Royal  should 
be  then  prosecuted. 

Upon  the  whole  I  countermanded  my  Orders  on  Friday, 
and  forwarded  the  Imbarkations  with  all  Speed,  and  Davis 
sail'd  yesterday  with  a  Company  for  Annapolis  directly,  as 
did  Captn  Cobb  with  thirty  of  his  Company,  which  last,  as  I 
had  at  first  upon  the  Alarm  given  by  Sanders,  hir'd  him  to 
go  with  a  Schooner  and  Whale  boat  to  look  into  the  Gut 
first  and  see  if  any  French  Ships  were  there,  I  have  not 
vary'd  his  Orders  (tho'  I  think  there  is  no  Occasion  for  that 
Caution)  and  he  is  afterwards  to  come  to  Passamaquoddy, 
where  the  Bien  Aime,  which  will  sail  to  morrow  with  200 
Men  from  hence  and  Stores,  (as  will  also,  I  hope,  a  Sloop 
with  70  more  men  and  Stores)  is  to  go  and  stay  for  Advice 
from  Cobb,  as  your  two  Vessells  may,  if  you  choose  that,  tho' 
I  shall  order  the  Sloop,  which  I  have  hir'd  to  proceed  directly 
to  Annapolis.  The  Government  of  Rhode  Island  has  upon 
my  Application  determin'd  to  send  300  men  to  Annapolis, 
and  sent  me  word  of  it ;  and  they  are  to  sail  on  Tuesday  for 
Passamaquoddy,  as  the  Commanding  Officer  has  agreed  with 
me,  and  there  wait  for  Intelligence. 

Govr.  Mascarene  presses  for  more  men,  with  an  assurance, 
if  they  are  sent,  that  they  shall  be  able  to  drive  the  Canadians 
quite  out  of  the  province,  which  would  be  a  finishing  Stroke  to 

363  "    - 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

'em ;  and  discourage  'em  from  returning  again,  especially 
as  they  have  been  so  disappointed  by  the  French  fleet ;  and 
quite  secure  the  Nova  Scotians  from  thoughts  of  a  Revolt. 
I  would  therefore  beg  of  you  not  only  to  send  away  your  two 
Companies  and  Arm'd  Vessells  with  the  utmost  Dispatch  ; 
But  if  possible  to  send  200  or  300  more  men,  as  I  shall  from 
hence,  if  I  can  possibly ;  and  should  send  1000  more,  if  I  was 
not  under  an  Absolute  Engagement  to  the  Assembly  to  send 
1500  men  to  Crown  point.  I  wish  you  may  be  able  to  read 
this  Scrawl,  which  I  hope  you  will  excuse  and  am.  Sir, 
Your  Excellency's  most  Obedient  &c. 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy.  Govr.  Wentworth. 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   WILLIAM   GREENE » 

Boston,  October  27,  1746. 
Sir, 

I  wrote  to  you  by  Lieut.  Col.  Kinnicut;  since  when,  I 
have  advices  arrived  from  Annapolis  Royal,  dated  the  20th 
instant,  informing  me  that  they  go  on  there  very  well  against 
the  enemy ;  and  want  only  more  strength  to  drive  the  Cana- 
dians out  of  the  province,  forthwith ;  whereupon.  Governor 
Mascarene  presses  me  for  such  an  addition  of  men,  as  will 
make  up  what  is  sent  fifteen  hundred  or  two  thousand.  Ac- 
cordingly, by  to-morrow,  near  four  hundred  men,  will,  I  hope, 
be  embarked,  and  sail  from  hence,  over  and  above  what  I 
before  sent,  which  was  two  hundred  and  sixty ;  and  I  shall 
to-morrow  give  orders  for  three  hundred  men  more  to  pre- 
pare for  embarkation ;  and  hope  to  get  them  ready  for  sailing 
by  Friday,  at  farthest.  These,  with  the  two  hundred  men  from 
Governor  Wentworth,  and  your  three  hundred,  will  make 
about  sixteen  hundred ;  and  I  have  pressed  Governor  Went- 
worth to  send  a  further  reinforcement,  which  I  am  in  hopes 
he  will  do ;  and  I  must  entreat  Your  Honor  to  hasten  your 
three  companies,  if  they  shall  not  be  sailed  before  this  comes 
to  your  hands,  with  all  possible  speed. 

1  Printed :  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  196. 
364 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM    SHIRLEY 

The  officer  who  brought  me  the  despatches  from  AnnapoHs, 
saw  nothing  of  the  French  fleet  in  the  Bay  of  Fundy,  in  his 
passage ;  and  I  have  just  now  heard  that  they  have  been 
seen  sixty  leagues  to  the  south-west  of  Cape  Sable ;  at  all 
events,  every  one  here  is  persuaded,  with  myself,  that  they 
are  in  a  miserable,  sickly,  weak  condition,  and  are  making  the 
best  of  their  way  to  the  West  Indies  ;  and  we  have  now  an 
opportunity  of  giving  the  finishing  stroke  to  the  Canadians 
in  Nova  Scotia,  which  I  hope  we  shall  not  let  slip  ;  as  it  might 
prove  of  bad  consequence  to  us,  in  every  respect,  the  next 
spring.     I  am,  with  all  due  regard,  Sir, 

Your  Honour's  obedient  humble  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
To  Governor  Greene. 

The  post  stays  for  this ;  excuse  haste. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH ' 

Boston,  October  28,  1746. 
Sir, 

I  trouble  you  with  this  to  let  you  know  that  I  have  this  day 
order'd  three  more  Companies  of  100  men  each,  which  will 
make  nine  Companies  In  the  whole  from  Boston,  for  Annap- 
olis Royal ;  I  hope  your  Excellency  will  not  fail  to  send 
three  or  four  more  besides  the  two  now  ready  to  embark 
from  your  Governmt  which  will  effectually  drive  the  Cana- 
dians out  of  Nova  Scotia,  free  it  from  the  Danger,  which  may 
ensue  by  next  Spring,  from  their  Wintering  there ;  and  be 
undoubtedly  esteem'd  a  singular  Service  by  his  Majesty. 
I  am  with  great  regard  and  Esteem 

Your  Excy's  most  Obedient 
Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy.  Govr.  Wentworth. 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
C,  p.  83. 

36s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  WILLIAM  GREENE  ^ 

Boston,  November  4th,  1746. 
Sir, 

1  have  now  the  pleasure  of  informing  Your  Honour  of  the 
French  Fleet's  quitting  the  Coast,  of  Nova  Scotia,  and  going 
off  to  the  West  Indies,  and  the  Canadians  breaking  up  their 
Camp  before  the  garrison  at  Annapolis  Royal ;  But  not- 
withstanding this,  as  service  of  the  greatest  Importance 
remains  yet  to  be  done  in  Nova  Scotia,  viz.  taking  or  destroy- 
ing all  the  Enemy's  Magazines  of  Warlike  Stores  and  Pro- 
visions, at  Minas  and  Chicknecto  ;^  taking  all  the  grain  in  the 
Country  (except  what  is  wanted  by  the  inhabitants  for  their 
present  use),  for  His  Majesty's  service,  and  the  same  with 
respect  to  their  Cattle ;  by  which  means,  all  the  inhabitants 
and  Indians  might  be  disarmed ;  and  the  latter,  together 
with  the  Canadians  (in  case  they  should  return  next  spring) 
be  without  Subsistance  from  the  Country ;  driving  off  the 
Canadians,  designed  to  winter  in  Minas  or  Chicknecto,  and 
distressing  the  Indians  there ;  among  whom  a  very  bad 
sickness  prevails  which  has  already  swept  off  hundreds  of 
'em,  visiting  Chebucto,  and  seeing  what  footsteps  the  French 
have  left  there,  calling  the  Malecontents,  who  are  the  most 
obnoxious  among  the  French  Inhabitants,  to  an  Acct.  for 
their  joining  an  open  correspondence  with  the  enemy,  and 
destroying  the  Settlements  of  such  of  'em  as  shall  abscond ; 
and  perhaps  recovering  some  of  the  Prize  Vessels  and  Goods 
taken  from  the  English ;  By  all  which  means,  the  Canadians 
would  be  discouraged  from  renewing  their  attempts  next 
Spring,  the  friends  to  His  Majesty's  Government  in  that 
Province  confirmed  in  their  fidelity,  the  abettors  of  the 
French  interest  diminished,  and  deterred  from  open  or  even 
secret  acts  of  hostility,  and  the  Indians  very  much  harassed 

^  R.  L  Col,  Rec.  5,  203.  A  similar  letter  to  Governor  Went- 
worth  of  New  Hampshire  is  in  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manu- 
scripts, 61  C,  p.  84. 

2  More  correctly  Chignecto,  at  the  head  of  the  bay  of  the  same 
name  forming  the  western  arm  of  the  Bay  of  Fundy. 

366 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

and  disabled  from  giving  the  Enemy  the  usual  assistance; 
so  that  If  the  Canadians  should  repeat  their  visit  in  the  spring, 
they  would  not  be  able  to  make  any  progress  in  the  Country, 
to  the  disadvantage  of  the  Garrison. 

I  say  as  all  these  services,  which  have  so  plain  a  tendency 
to  settle  the  lasting  security  of  the  Province,  remain  yet  to 
be  done ;  and  this  fall  is  the  only  opportunity  for  doing  it ; 
and  I  am  informed  by  persons  well  acquainted  with  the 
seasons  in  Nova  Scotia,  that  the  Winter  is  not  yet  too  far 
advanced  for  doing  this  with  a  probable  prospect  of  the 
men's  returning  afterwards,  this  Winter,  I  have  determined 
to  send  the  reinforcement  of  five  companies,  which  I  pro- 
posed before  my  receiving  the  last  advices ;  some  of  which, 
are  already  sailed,  and  others  go  to-day,  and  the  rest  In  two 
days,  at  farthest;  and  I  hope  Your  Honour,  If  your  three 
companies  are  not  already  sailed,  will  order  them  to  proceed 
forthwith. 

If  our  endeavors  are  attended  with  success  at  this  critical 
conjuncture,  as  I  hope  they  will,  it  will  be  a  most  beneficial 
service  for  His  Majesty  and  the  Colonies. 

I  am  in  haste  the  Post  waiting  Sir, 

Your  Honour's  most  obedt  Humble  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  i 

Boston,  Novr.  ii,  1746. 
Sir, 

I  receiv'd  your  Excellency's  Express  with  great  Pleasure ; 
and  immediately  sent  to  Mr  Apthorpe  to  supply  your  Mes- 
senger with  sixty  Blankets,  which  he  promis'd  to  do,  But  the 
next  morning  upon  my  sending  for  Mr  David  Jefferies  he 
told  me  that  one  of  your  Committee  of  Warr  had  found  a 
sufficient  Quantity  here  ;  and  upon  his  Application  to  me 
for  the  Delivery  of  forty  Barrels  of  Gunpowder  for  you,  I 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts, 
61  C,  p.  84. 

367 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

immediately  order'd  it.     I  fully  design'd    to  answer  your 
Excy's  favour  by  the  post ;    But  he  slipt  me. 

The  Inclosed  is  sent  you  at  the  Desire  of  the  Assembly ; 
and,  tho'  I  remember  I  mention'd  in  one  of  mine  to  you,  that 
I  thought  there  would  be  forces  enough  left  to  be  employ'd 
in  the  Reduction  of  Crown  point  without  any  from  your 
province,  yet  I  think  our  succeeding  in  that  attempt  will  next 
to  the  preservation  of  Nova  Scotia  (which  I  acknowledge  I 
esteem  of  Infinitely  greater  Importance  in  every  respect)  be 
attended  with  the  happiest  Consequences  to  the  Colonies ; 
I  am  exceedingly  glad  that  your  Excellency's  firmness  has 
carry'd  you  tho'  all  Obstacles  in  the  way  of  sending  Succours 
to  his  Majy's  Garrison  at  AnnapoHs,^  which  I  doubt  not  will 
turn  out  right ;  and  I  shall  be  very  glad  of  your  contributing 
to  the  Success  of  the  Expedition  against  Crown  point,  which 
ought  certainly  to  be  attempted  with  as  strong  a  force  as 
we  can  send,  after  taking  care  of  Nova  Scotia. 
I  am  with  great  truth  and  Esteem 
Sir, 

Your  Excellency's  most 

Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy  Govr  Wentworth. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  2 

Boston,  November  12,  1746. 
Sir, 

The  late  Apprehensions  we  have  had  of  an  Invasion  from 
the  French  as  well  as  of  their  Designs  against  Annapolis 
Royal  and  the  Province  of  Nova  Scotia,  have  lately  so  much 
employed  the  Care  of  this  Government  (as  we  suppose  it 
has  done  that  of  the  Government  of  New  Hampshire)  that 
we  have  been  in  a  great  Measure  diverted  from  prosecuting 

^  The  underlining  is  by  Wentworth. 

2  Original,  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts,  61 
C,  p.  85. 

368 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  Expedition  against  the  French  Fort  at  Crown  Point ;  But 
the  French  Fleet  being  now  gone  off,  I  shall  attend  closely 
to  the  Prosecution  of  this  great  Affair,  And  I  have  according 
sent  Provisions,  Powder  and  all  other  necessary  Stores  of  War, 
Including  our  large  Mortar  with  a  sufficient  Quantity  of 
Bomb  Shells,  to  Albany  to  be  ready  for  the  Forces  on  their 
Arrival  there  :  And  I  have  also  sent  a  thousand  or  twelve 
Hundred  of  the  Soldiers  raised  for  the  Canada  Expedition  In 
this  Province,  and  shall  make  them  up  fifteen  hundred  Men  at 
least  to  proceed  In  that  Part  of  the  Winter  as  shall  be  judged 
most  seasonable  for  this  Important  Expedition  ^  and  to  join  the 
Forces  from  the  Southern  Colonies  now  on  Hudson's  River 
and  those  from  your  Province  :  And  as  this  Is  a  Matter  of  the 
utmost  Importance  to  the  future  Tranquillity  of  these  Prov- 
inces and  Colonies,  and  the  Forces  of  New  Hampshire  are  so 
well  versed  In  this  kind  of  War ;  I  must  Intreat  your  Excel- 
lency to  take  effectual  Care  that  the  whole  of  your  Forces 
raised  for  the  Expedition  against  Canada,  saving  what  you 
detach  for  his  Majesty's  Service  In  the  Province  of  Nova 
Scotia,  shall  be  ready  to  join  the  rest  of  the  Troops.  That 
this  Affair  may  be  effectually  prosecuted,  (a  Miscarriage 
wherein  may  be  of  fatal  Consequence)  I  shall  not  have  a 
Man  taken  off  from  this  Service,  more  than  what  I  have 
thought  necessary  to  be  sent  to  Annapolis.  And  therefore 
I  must  repeat  my  earnest  Desire  that  your  Excellency 
would  press  this  Matter  with  the  greatest  Zeal  and  Vigour : 
And  I  send  this  to  you  by  Express,  by  whom  I  shall  hope 
for  an  Answer. 

I  am  with  the  greatest  regard 
Sir, 

Your  Excellency's  most 

Obedient,  Humble  Servt 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excellency  Benning  Wentworth  Esqr. 

^  The  underlining  Is  by  Wentworth. 


369 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY    TO    JOHN    STODDARD  ^ 

Sir, 

These  are  to  desire  and  direct  you  forthwith  to  give  Orders 
that  from  the  20th  Day  of  November  Instant,  all  the  Western 
Frontiers,  saving  the  Garrison  at  Fort  Dummer,  be  reduced 
to  the  Number  of  One  hundred  and  Nine  Men,  Fifteen 
whereof  must  be  posted  at  the  three  Block  Houses  West  of 
Connecticutt  River,  eight  at  Colrain  to  be  of  the  Inhabit- 
ants, Six  of  the  Inhabitants  of  Fall  Town,  and  Thirty  at 
the  two  Ashuelots  twenty  whereof  to  be  Inhabitants,  the 
remaining  thirty  five  to  be  a  marching  Party  under  the  Com- 
mand of  such  Officer  as  you  shall  think  most  proper,  and  to 
be  employed  in  the  best  manner  for  the  Defence  of  the  most 
exposed  Places,  according  to  such  order  as  you  shall  give : 
And  you  must  take  effectual  Care  that  the  remainder  of  the 
Forces  both  within  and  without  the  Line,  be  dismiss'd  upon 
the  twentieth  Day  of  this  Month  or  as  soon  as  may  be ;  The 
Muster  Rolls  to  be  made  up  to  that  Time,  and  the  Wages  of 
the  Officers  and  Soldiers  in  actual  Service,  to  be  carried  out 
to  such  Time  as  is  necessary  for  returning  home,  allowing 
twenty  Miles  a  Day. 
I  am 

.    Your  Assur'd  Friend  and 
Servant 
Boston,  Novr.  13,  1746.  W.  Shirley. 

To  Colonel  John  Stoddard. 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY    TO    PAUL    MASCARENE  ^ 

Boston,  Deer.  19th,  1746. 
Sir, 

Some  weeks  ago  Governour  Knowles  inform'd  me,  that  he 
had  given  it  as  his  Opinion  to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  by  the 
last   Ships   from   Louisbourg,  that  the  French   Inhabitants 

^  Original  in  Massachusetts  Papers,  Library  of  Congress. 
2  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  901,  p.  92. 

370 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

shou'd  be  drove  out  of  Nova  Scotia  early  next  Spring,  and  that 
he  wou'd  come  to  Boston  as  soon  as  possible,  to  concert  meas- 
ures with  me  for  that  purpose  :  And  I  understand  since  from 
another  of  his  Letters,  that  he  has  sent  his  Majesty's  Sloop 
Hind  to  look  into  the  Harbours  on  the  Cape  Sable  Shoar; 
and  from  thence  to  proceed  up  the  Bay  of  Fundy  to  Annap- 
olis Royal  for  Intelligence  and  Orders  from  you,  and  then 
to  go  on  to  Boston. 

It  is  very  probable  that  he  has  acquainted  you  by  Letter 
with  his  Sentiments,  and  Designs  against  the  Inhabitants  of 
Nova  Scotia ;  But  if  he  has  not,  as  his  Scheme  for  driving 
'em  off  next  Spring  is  publickly  known  and  talk'd  of  at 
Louisbourg,  all  the  People  in  the  Hind  must  know  it,  and  will 
doubtless  talk  much  of  it  at  Annapolis ;  so  that  I  think  it  is 
scarcely  possible  but  that  it  must  be  convey'd  in  some  manner 
or  other  to  the  French  Inhabitants  ;  which,  if  it  is,  will  inevi- 
tably lessen,  if  not  destroy  whatever  Influence  my  Letter^  dis- 
pers'd  among  'em  may  have  had,  and  ruin  our  Credit  with 
'em ;  and  that  an  End  will  be  put  to  all  Dependence  on  our 
promises  or  Assurances  to  'em,  when  they  shall  find  two  of 
his  Majesty's  Governours  acting  so  contradictory  to  each 
other;  at  least  it  is  most  likely  their  fears  of  being  drove 
off  their  Settlements  and  Estates  the  next  year  grounded  on 
Mr  Knowles's  declar'd  Scheme  will  prevail  over  any  hopes, 
they  may  have  conceiv'd  from  my  late  Declaration  to  'em. 

Shou'd  this  happen  to  be  the  Case  I  need  not  observe  to 
you,  how  dangerous  the  Consequences  of  it  may  be  to  the 
safety  of  the  Province  under  your  Comand,  and  his  Maj- 
esty's Service  in  the  Expedition  next  year,  if  his  Majesty 
shou'd  be  pleas'd  to  have  it  proceed  then ;  For  what  can  be 
expected  from  People  in  despair  of  preserving  their  Estates 
and  Families,  but  desperate  Attempts  to  secure  themselves 
against  the  Danger  by  Joining  with  his  Majesty's  Enemies, 
who  will  Doubtless  take  the  advantage  of  this  Alarm,  and 
make  their  utmost  efl"orts  to  bring  'em  to  a  general  Revolt. 
Such  an  Alarm  wou'd  indeed  be  extremely  unfortunate  at  this 
Crisis ;   nor  do  I  see  how  anything  less  than  a  certain  Assur- 

^  See  Shirley  to  Mascarene,  Sept.  i6,  1746,  ante,  p.  354. 

371 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ance  coming  directly  from  his  Majesty  that  they  shall  be 
treated  upon  the  foot  of  Subjects,  and  not  all  drove  off  as 
Enemies,  can  quiet  it  so  effectually  as  is  to  be  wish'd  at  this 
time  :  However  it  is  our  duty  to  do  what  we  can ;  and  pos- 
sibly it  may  be  of  some  Service  (if  such  an  Alarm  shou'd 
have  been  spread  among  'em)  to  let  'em  know  that  I  have 
lay'd  their  case  before  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  in  the  most 
favourable  manner  for  his  Majesty's  Consideration,  and  have 
recommended  such  of  em,  as  shall  avoid  all  traitorous  Com- 
binations and  Correspondence  with  his  Enemies  to  the 
Continuance  of  his  Royal  Protection  of  'em  in  their  Estates 
and  Settlements ;  and  that  I  am  perswaded,  a  favourable 
Answer  may  be  depended  upon  from  his  Majesty;  and  also 
that  as  Mr  Knowles  has  inform'd  me  he  is  coming  to  Boston 
to  consult  with  me  what  Steps,  he  shall  take  in  this  Affair, 
I  will  be  bound  to  'em  that  he  shall  not  offer  the  least  Hos- 
tility to  'em  till  his  Majesty's  Commands  shall  be  receiv'd 
here  concerning  'em,  which  I  will  venture  to  take  upon  me  to 
promise  'em  will  be  full  of  tenderness  towards  all  such,  as 
shall  not  forfeit  their  title  to  his  Clemency  by  joining  with 
his  Enemies.  I  doubt  not  but  your  own  Prudence,  if  I  have 
omitted  anything,  which  ought  to  be  Declar'd  to  'em  upon 
this  Occasion,  will  suggest  it  to  you,  Sir ;  And  the  sooner  you 
attempt,  after  the  Poison  is  infus'd,  to  expell  it,  the  better. 
I  am  Sir,  with  great  Regard  and  Esteem 
Your  most  Obedient  Humble 
Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
Lieut  Governour  Mascarene. 

Endorsed : 

Copy  of  a  Letter  from 

Govr  Shirley  to  Mr  Mascarene. 

Boston,  Deer  19,  1746 
in  his  Letter  of  Deer  20,  1746. 


372 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  BENNING  WENTWORTH  ' 

Boston,  Deer.  22,  1746. 
Sir, 

The  Post  gives  me  but  a  moment's  time  to  say  in  Answer  to 
your  Excellency's  last  favour,  that  as  I  believe  from  the  best 
Opinions  in  this  Province,  particularly  Colonel  Stoddard's, 
that  the  forces  sent  agt  St  Francois  ought  to  be  500  at  least  ^ 
and  that  a  successful  attempt  agt  the  Settlemts  there  would  be 
of  exceeding  great  Service  even  for  facilitating  the  Reduction 
of  Crown  point,  by  the  Alarm,  and  Diversion  it  would  give 
the  Enemy,  and  your  Excellency  is  under  such  Strong  Engage- 
ments  to  your  Assembly  for  making  that  Attempt,  I  think  it 
would  be  wrong  to  diminish  the  number  of  your  Governmts 
Troops  by  Sparing  100  of  'em  for  Crown  point ;  and  that  I 
should  be  rather  of  Opinion  to  augment  the  number  of  your 
own  forces  with  200  from  hence  for  breaking  up  the  Indians 
at  St  Francois,  than  to  take  that  number  from  'em.  Be  pleas'd 
only  not  to  let  'em  march  'till  I  hear  from  you.  I  will  an- 
swer yours  at  large  by  next  Post;    and  am 

Your  Excy's  most  Obedient 
Humble  Servt 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Excy  Govr  Wentworth. 

BENJAMIN   SEALLY  AND   WILLIAM   FURNESS 
DEPOSITION  AS  TO  THE  FRENCH  FLEET' 

Benjamin  Seally  and  William  Furness  both  of  Marblehead 
Mariners  declare  and  say,  that  on  the  Second  day  of  October 
last  they  sailed  out  of  Marblehead  in  the  Sloop  Diamond, 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  Belknap  Manuscripts, 
61  C,  p.  88.  See  also  Shirley  to  Governor  Law  of  Connecticut  in 
Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.  13,  359. 

2  The  underlining  is  by  Wentworth. 

^  B.  M.,  Additio7ial  Manuscript  32710,  381.  Inclosed  in  letter  of 
William  Shirley,  Jr.,  to  Andrew  Stone  of  Mar.  20,  1746/7. 

373 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

whereof  Samuel  Hooper  of  said  Marblehead  was  master, 
and  made  the  best  of  their  Way  for  Cape  Sables  and  Cape 
Negers ;  which  places  they  discovered  about  Five  days  after, 
and  then  kept  Cruising  about  25  or  30  Leagues  to  the  West- 
ward of  the  Isle  of  Sables,  in  order  to  meet  with  the  English 
Fleet  then  expected  from  England  to  Louisbourg,  as  our 
Captain  Informed  us ;  that  on  the  fifteenth  of  said  month 
it  was  very  foggy  weather,  and  after  it  cleared  away  we  saw 
six  Ships  about  four  or  five  Leagues  distant  from  us,  which 
we  Apprehended  were  part  of  the  English  Fleet,  and  en- 
deavoured to  keep  the  Windward  of  'em  in  order  to  make 
a  full  Discovery  of  'em,  but  in  the  morning  we  found  our 
selves  in  the  midst  of  'em  :  they  fired  about  twelve  Guns  at  us 
before  we  struck  our  Colours,  and  nine  afterwards,  which 
was  on  the  sixteenth  day  of  October  aforesaid,  the  Ship  that 
took  us  was  about  four  hundred  Tons  (as  we  Judge)  and 
employed  as  a  Storeship  in  the  French  Fleet,  after  we  went 
aboard  they  asked  the  Captain  for  his  papers,  who  told  'em 
he  had  none,  (having  thrown  over  the  Packet  he  had  for  the 
Admiral  of  the  English  Fleet  as  soon  as  we  struck  :)  when  We 
were  taken  the  French  Fleet  (being,  as  one  of  our  men  tol  I 
them  over.  Forty  one  in  number  consisting  of  Six  Line  of 
Battle  Ships  and  other  Ships  and  Frigates  and  about  Six  or 
seven  smaller  Vessells)  was  about  Ten  Leagues  to  westward 
of  Cape  Sables,  Steering  to  the  Westward ;  the  wind  being 
then  to  the  Northward ;  bound  as  they  told  us  to  Annapolis 
in  order  to  take  that  place :  they  further  said  that  five  hun- 
dred French  and  Indians  were  gone  to  Attack  it  by  Land, 
the  same  time  the  Ships  did  by  Sea ;  and  if  they  should  take  it 
they  were  immediately  to  Fortify  the  place  and  Strengthen  the 
Settlements ;  there  being  five  Millions  of  money  on  board  the 
Northumberland,  the  French  Admirals  Ship  for  that  purpose. 
Upon  examining  Captain  Hooper  and  the  Declarants, 
they  found  that  he  and  two  other  Vessells  were  sent  out  By 
the  Governour  of  Massachusetts  to  give  notice  to  the  Ad- 
miral of  the  English  Fleet  where  the  French  Fleet  were  ;  and 
the  Circumstances  they  were  in,  at  which  the  Captain  of  the 
Ship  that  took  em  seem'd  much  surpriz'd,  ask'd  many  Ques- 

374 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

tlons  about  the  said  English  Fleet,  and  Immediately  sent 
to  the  Commodore  of  the  French  Fleet  about  this  Infor- 
mation, he  had  from  Captain  Hooper  and  the  Declarants, 
by  our  Sloop.  In  about  an  hours  time  afterwards  the  whole 
Fleet  altered  their  Course,  and  Steered  to  the  Southwd. 
having  determined  (as  we  were  Informed)  some  to  go  to 
France  and  the  others  to  the  West  Indies ;  The  Day  after 
we  were  taken  the  wind  blew  very  hard  and  brought  on  a 
very  severe  Storm,  which  seperated  the  Ship  that  took  us 
from  the  rest  of  the  Fleet ;  they  seem'd  to  be  much  Con- 
cern'd  a  board  the  Ship,  that  took  us,  after  the  Storm  was 
over  for  the  rest  of  the  Fleet ;  fearing  many  of  'em  were  lost 
or  had  suffered  great  Damage ;  for  none  of  'em  were  seen 
afterwards,  it  being  very  Sickly  aboard  all  the  Ships,  and  but 
few  men  that  could  be  upon  Deck  :  the  Ship  that  took  us 
had  about  150  men  on  board,  only  30  whereof  were  able 
to  do  Duty,  the  rest  being  sick  Chiefly  with  the  Scurvy ; 
about  60  or  70  of  whom  died  while  we  were  aboard ;  which 
was  till  the  16  of  Novemr.,  when  we  met  with  an  English 
Privateer,  who  took  us  and  Carried  us  into  St.  Chris- 
tophers ;  from  whence  we  got  passage  to  Marblehead ; 
where  we  arrived  last  Saturday  the  27th.  Instant. 

his 
Benja.     X     Seally. 
mark 
William  Furness. 

Boston,  Decemr:  31,  1746. 

Province  of  the  Massachusets  Bay  ss.    Boston  Dec.  31, 1746. 

Benjamin  Seally  and  William  Furness  made  Oath  to  the 
Truth  of  the  Aforegoing  Declaration  Signed  by  them. 

Before  me        Jacob  Wendell  Just.  Peac. 
Copy  Examined    ^  J.  Willard  Secry. 


375 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Endorsed: 

Deposition  of  B.  Sealy,  [and  W.  Furness,  Mariners.]  in 
Mr.  Shirley's  of  March  20,  1746/7.^ 
Suffolk  Street 

March  20,  1746. 

Andrew  Stone  Esqr. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  PETER  WARREN  ^ 

Boston,  Jany  2,  1746/7. 
Sir, 

The  Honr.  I  bear  for  Gentlemen  of  a  publick  Spirit  and  such 
as  are  useful  to  the  Commonwealth,  as  well  as  my  particular 
and  personal  Obligations  to  you  will  make  me  always  solicitous 
for  your  Welfare  and  especially  that  you  may  have  a  safe  and 
prosperous  Voyage  to  Great  Britain,  and  success  in  the  gener- 
ous design  you  have  laid  for  his  Majesty's  Service  in  general 
and  for  the  Benefit  and  Security  of  these  Provinces  in  particu- 
lar. And  I  doubt  not  but  that  the  great  share  you  have  in 
the  Affections  of  this  People  as  well  as  your  strict  regard  to 
Justice  and  the  knowledge  you  have  of  the  peculiar  difficulties 
and  burthens  lying  upon  us  will  prompt  you  to  do  everything 
in  your  Power  to  obtain  a  Reimbursement  of  our  charges  in 
the  late  Expedition  which  will  otherwise  be  insupportable  and 
ruinous  to  this  Province,  already  impoverished  and  exhausted 

^  Shirley's  letter  to  Stone  follows  {Additional  Manuscript  S^Jio, 
fo.  379)  • 

Sir, 

Having  receiv'd  the  inclos'd  Deposition  from  my  Father  with  his 
Orders  to  lay  it  before  my  Lord  Duke  of  Newcastle,  I  beg  leave  to 
cover  it  to  you,  and  also  to  add  an  Extract  of  his  Letter  to  me  which 
he  has  likewise  directed  me  to  lay  before  his  Grace. 
I  am 

Sir 

Your  most  Humble  and 

most  Obedient  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
2  Draft  in  Ms.  of  Josiah  Willard,  Mass.  Arch.,  Col.  Ser.,  Letters, 
S3,  208. 

376 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

by  the  Expence  of  the  War  upon  our  Borders  as  well  as  of 
our  Expeditions  abroad.  ... 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   WILLIAM   GREENE  ^ 

Boston,  January  5,  1746/7. 
Sir, 

This  will  be  delivered  you  by  Lieutent  Wilkinson  from  whom 
as  well  as  by  a  letter  from  Col.  Kinnicutt,  I  am  sorry  to 
learn  that  the  Levies  of  your  Governmt  are  at  length  by  a 
Train  of  Cross  Accidents  and  Disasters  prevented  from  going 
upon  His  Majesty's  service  to  Annapolis  Royal,  for  which 
both  your  Governmt  and  the  Troops  have  shown  so  ready 
a  Disposition  ;  I  can't  say  but  that  I  think  after  having  been 
so  greatly  weaken'd,  and  reduced  by  sickness  and  deaths,  as 
I  understood  the  three  Companies  are,  that  your  Officers 
Judged  right  in  not  venturing 'em  upon  a  passage  to  Annap- 
olis in  so  extreme,  and  wintry  a  season  as  the  present  has 
prov'd ;  since  in  all  probability  it  would  have  destroy'd 
many  of  the  Soldiers,  and  the  few  that  had  survived  it,  might 
have  been  rather  a  Burthen  than  of  service  to  the  Garrison ; 
I  heartily  wish  those  of  'em,  which  are  sailed  for  Newport,  a 
safe  Arrival  there  and  that  the  sick  among  them,  and  those 
left  at  Martha's  Vineyard,  may  recover. 

Mr  Wilkinson  informs  me  that  some  deserters  from  your 
Levies  are  suspected  to  be  conceal'd  in  this  Governmt;  If 
there  is  any  possibility  of  getting  at  'em,  I  will  take  care  they 
shall  be  secur'd  for  you,  upon  my  being  apprised  where  any 
of  'em  may  be  apprehended. 

I  took  the  first  Opportunity  of  laying  before  the  Assembly 
of  this  Province,  the  copy  of  His  Majesty's  Order  in  Council  for 
settling  the  boundary  line  between  the  Province  and  Colony 
together  with  the  Act  of  your  Governmt,  appointing  Com- 
missioners to  join  with  those  of  this  Govt.  In  running  and 
marking  the  line  accordingly,  and  of  recommending  to  'em 
forthwith  to  choose  Commissioners  for  that  purpose;  which 

^  Kimball,  Corres.  R.  I.  Governors,  2,  34. 

377 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

I  hope  they  will  readily  do.     When  it  Is  done,  I  shall  trans- 
mit you  the  first  notice  of  it,  that  I  can. 

I  am,  with  due  regard  Sir, 

Your  Honour's  Obedient  Humble  servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
To  His  Excellency,  Gov.  Greene. 

P.S.  I  hope  that  800  of  the  Massachusetts  Levies  are  all, 
long  before  this,  safely  arrived  at  Annapolis,  with  a  great 
quantity  of  snow  shoes ;  as  also  the  two  New  Hampshire 
Companies ;  and  that  they  may  be  a  force  sufficient  for  the 
purposes  of  His  Majesty's  service  there. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY   TO   WILLIAM   GREENE  ^ 

Boston,  February  7,  1747. 
Sir, 

By  my  last  advices  from  Albany,  I  find  the  condition  of 
the  troops  of  the  Southern  colonies,  now  on  Hudson's  River, 
as  to  their  state  of  health  and  numbers,  and  the  strong  dis- 
position of  the  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations  to  join  with  us  in 
the  attempt  against  Crown  Point,  and  the  danger  of  utterly 
losing  these  Nations,  and  their  falling  off  to  the  French, 
(which  will  be  of  the  most  fatal  consequence  to  all  the  North- 
ern English  colonies,)  to  be  such,  that  I  am  now  fixed  in  my 
resolution  to  push  forward  this  enterprise  with  all  imaginable 
diligence ;  and  as  the  government  of  Connecticut  has  de- 
clined to  join  their  forces  with  ours,  which  will  much  lessen  the 
numbers  we  expected,  I  must  earnestly  desire  Your  Honour 
to  send  forward  to  our  rendezvous  on  Hudson's  River,  as 
many  of  the  troops  of  your  government  in  His  Majesty's 
pay,  as  you  can  furnish  out  for  this  service. 

^  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  209.  The  correspondence  with  Governor 
Jonathan  Law  of  Connecticut  to  which  reference  is  made  is  in  the 
Law  Manuscripts  in  the  Conn.  Hist.  Soc.  2,  149,  154,  155,  156. 
The  letter  of  Sir  William  Johnson  to  Lydius  is  in  R.  I.  Col.  Rec. 
5,  210.  ^  - 

378 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

The  success  of  this  enterprise  being  of  the  utmost  impor- 
tance, I  trust  you  will  do  every  thing  in  your  power  to  pro- 
mote it. 

You  have  herewith  enclosed,   a  copy  of  Mr.  Johnson's 
letter  to  Mr.  Lydius,  and  of  the  advice  of  our  Assembly  to 
me,  in  this  affair. 
I  am,  Sir, 

Your  Honour's  very  Humble  servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
To  the  Hon.  William  Greene,  Esq. 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   WILLIAM   GREENE  ^ 

Boston,  February  9,  1746/7. 
Sir, 

I  have  this  morning  received  advices  from  Lieut.  Governor 
Mascarene,  that  Mons'r  Rawson,  who  was  posted  at  Menis, 
with  above  six  hundred  Canadians,  and  Indians,  was,  upon 
the  arrival  of  the  reinforcement  sent  from  hence,  retired  to 
Skeenecta ;  and  Col.  Noble,  with  a  body  of  about  five  hun- 
dred men,  consisting  principally  of  some  of  those  troops  I 
sent  from  hence,  is  now  at  Menis  ;  but  the  reports  of  the 
number  of  the  enemy  (being  represented  as  much  superior 
to  Col.  Noble,)  makes  him  cautious  of  pushing  them  without 
some  further  reinforcement. 

I  am  informed  that  the  enemy  will  not  be  able  to  get  off 
before  April ;  and  I  hope  our  troops  will  be  strong  enough 
to  hinder  their  retreat  till  the  English  can  have  some  further 
strength  from  these  colonies. 

It  appears  to  me,  by  what  advices  I  have  had,  that  if  it 
had  not  been  for  the  misfortune  that  happened  to  the  com- 
panies from  your  colony,  and  my  last  company,  bound  to 
Annapolis  Royal,  who  were  cast  away  at  Mount  Desert,  and 
above  one  half  of  them  drowned  and  frozen ;  and  the  New 
Hampshire  company,  under  Capt.  Mitchell,  (instead  of 
returning  to  Annapolis,  from  St.  Johns,  according  to  order,) 

1  Printed:  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  210. 

379 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

going  back  to  New  Hampshire,  our  troops  would  have  either 
entirely  drove  the  French  forces  into  the  woods,  where  they 
must  perish  if  they  stay  long,  or  have  made  them  all  prisoners 
of  war. 

And  as  Your  Honour  is  sensible  this  is  a  matter  of  the  ut- 
most importance  to  the  safety  of  Nova  Scotia,  and  for  secur- 
ing our  conquest  of  Cape  Breton,  and  the  season  is  advancing 
when  the  navigation  in  those  parts  will  be  much  safer  than 
it  has  been  in  the  months  past,  I  must  earnestly  desire  Your 
Honour,  that  in  case  you  find  any  difficulty  in  sending  your 
troops  in  the  King's  pay  to  Crown  Point,  you  would  not  fail 
of  sending  them  as  soon  as  they  may  be  got  ready,  to  Annap- 
olis Royal,  for  this  necessary  service. 

And  I  must  urge  this  with  greater  importunity,  because 
(having  already  upwards  of  seven  hundred  men  in  Nova 
Scotia,)  I  am  not  able  to  spare  a  man  more ;  the  remainder 
of  our  troops,  being  absolutely  necessary  to  be  employed  for 
the  reduction  of  Crown  Point,  to  which  place  I  have  given 
orders  that  they  should  march  with  all  possible  expedition. 
I  shall  also  press  the  Governor  of  New  Hampshire  to  order 
the  companies  (raised  there  for  the  expedition,)  to  Annapolis 
Royal. 

If  we  can  make  ourselves  strong  enough,  I  hope  your 
soldiers  will  be  detained  but  a  short  time  upon  this  service. 
However,  I  shall  continue  my  troops  here,  in  hopes  of  a  rein- 
forcement from  you. 

The  ready  spirit  which  the  government  of  Rhode  Island 
showed,  for  assisting  in  this  important  service,  upon  my  first 
application  to  Your  Honour  for  that  purpose,  leaves  no  room 
to  doubt,  but  that  they  will  exert  it  now  with  equal  vigor, 
and  not  let  slip  so  fair  an  opportunity  of  employing  the  same 
companies,  or  what  may  be  left  of  them,  so  beneficially  for 
His  Majesty's  service,  and  the  general  good  of  the  colonies ; 
and  so  acceptably  to  His  Majesty,  as  the  sending  these  com- 
panies to  Annapolis  Royal,  would  be,  at  this  most  critical 
juncture. 

If  the  troops  arrive  there  by  the  second  or  beginning 
of  the  third  week  in  March,  it  would  be  in  time,  though 

380 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  sooner  the  better;    they  need   not  stay  at  Annapolis 
long. 

I  am  with  due  respect,  Sir, 

Your  very  humble  servant, 
To  the  Hon.  William  Greene.  W.  Shirley. 


WILLIAM   GREENE   TO   WILLIAM   SHIRLEY » 

Providence,  20th  February,  1746/7. 
Sir, 

Immediately  on  the  receipt  of  Your  Excellency's  letter  of 
the  7th  current,  pressing  that  His  Majesty's  troops,  in  this 
colony,  might  be  sent  to  Hudson's  River,  in  order  to  join 
those  of  the  Southern  colonies,  &c.,  in  an  attempt  against 
Crown  Point,  I  issued  out  my  warrant,  to  summon  the  Gen- 
eral Assembly  to  meet  at  this  place  on  the  17th  instant;  but 
before  they  met,  I  had  the  honor  of  Your  Excellency's  letter, 
of  the  9th,  expressing  your  desire,  that  the  troops  here,  may 
be  sent  to  Annapolis  Royal,  if  I  should  find  any  difficulty  in 
sending  them  to  Crown  Point. 

The  Assembly  met  accordingly,  when  I  recommended 
both  of  Your  Excellency's  letters  to  their  consideration ;  but 
they  came  to  a  resolution,  that,  as  this  colony  has  no  pro- 
visions nor  stores  on  Hudson's  River,  and  the  navigation  of 
that  river  is  impracticable  at  this  season  of  the  year,  it  is 
not  possible  to  send  the  troops  thither,  as  desired. 

As  for  sending  them  to  Annapolis,  the  Assembly  is  of  opin- 
ion, that  the  time  proposed  by  Your  Excellency  for  them  to 
be  at  Annapolis,  is  so  short,  that  we  cannot  procure  trans- 
ports, provisions,  &c.,  in  time. 

What  increases  this  great  difficulty,  is,  that  the  troops  are 
greatly  enfeebled  and  lessened  in  numbers,  by  sickness  and 
desertion,  in  the  late  attempt  to  go  to  Annapolis.  More- 
over, the  people  of  the  colony's  sloop  are  discharged,  and 
the  vessel  itself  so  much  out  of  repair,  that  it  cannot  go  for 

1  Printed:  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  211. 
381 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

convoy;    for  which  reasons,  the  troops  cannot  be  sent  to 
Annapolis  at  this  juncture. 

This  is  the  determination  of  the  General  Assembly,  which 
I  am  directed  to  inform  Your  Excellency  of,  and  am,  with 
due  respects, 

Your  Excellency's  very  humble  servant, 

William  Greene. 

To  Governor  Shirley. 

JOSIAH  WILLARD  TO  WILLIAM  GREENE  * 

Boston,  March  5,  1747. 
Sir, 

I  am  directed  by  the  General  Court  here,  to  apprise 
Your  Honor  of  the  advice  we  have  from  our  agent,  by  the 
ship  from  London,  yesterday,  that  a  grant  was  made  in 
Parliament,  on  Friday,  the  4th  of  December  last,  of  £10,- 
200,000,  for  the  current  year ;  £800,000  of  which,  is  for  pay- 
ing the  charge  of  taking  and  keeping  Cape  Breton,  by  the 
people  of  New  England ;  and  the  charge  of  raising  forces 
for  the  expedition  that  was  designed  against  Canada. 

There  have  been  some  proposals  and  endeavors,  that  the 
payment  might  be  made  by  debentures ;  nothing  seems  so 
likely  to  prevent  it,  as  applying  the  money  granted  to  re- 
deem and  finish  our  fatal  paper  currency,  so  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  the  establishment  and  preservation  of  justice  in  our 
commerce,  and  so  much  for  the  interest  of  Great  Britain, 
as  well  as  ourselves. 

This,  we  are  very  sensible  cannot  be  done  effectually, 
without  the  meeting  of  the  several  Assemblies,  interested  in 
this  grant ;  it  Is  therefore  hoped  that  Your  Honor  will  call 
your  General  Court  together  as  soon  as  may  be,  that  the 
meeting  of  commissioners  may  not  be  put  oif  beyond  the 
time  proposed,  viz. :  the  12th  of  April  next,  in  order  to  their 
being  assured  at  home  very  soon,  that  this  money  will  be  so 

^Printed:  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  212. 

382 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

wisel7  applied,  and  for  a  purpose  so  absolutely  inconsistent 
with  debentures,  or  any  dilatory  methods  of  payment. 
I  am,  with  great  respect,  sir, 
Your  Honor's  most  humble  and  most  obedient  servant, 

JOSIAH   WiLLARD. 

To  the  Hon.  Governor  Greene. 

P.S.     The  agent's  letter  was  dated  the  loth  December, 
and  sent  to  Portsmouth  a  few  days  before  the  ship  sailed. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  JOHN  STODDARD  ^ 

Boston,  April  loth,  1747. 
Sir, 

The  General  Court  having  come  to  a  Resolution  respect- 
ing the  Defence  of  the  Frontiers,  and  provided  for  erecting  a 
Number  of  Blockhouses,  particularly  one  at  or  near  the 
Place  where  Massachusetts  Fort  stood,  another  to  the  West- 
ward of  Fort  Pelham,  and  third  between  Colerain,  and  Fall 
Town,  (for  the  building  of  which  you  have  my  Order  here- 
with inclosed),  and  having  voted  Pay  and  Subsistence  to  the 
Garrisons  to  be  placed  in  such  Blockhouses,  and  the  Soldiers 
to  be  posted  in  other  Places  particularly  mention'd,  I  shall 
give  Orders  to  Brigadier  Dwight  to  draw  out  of  his  Regimt 
so  many  Men  as  with  those  now  in  the  Service  in  the  County 
of  Hampshire  will  make  up  the  full  number  allowed  on  this 
Establishmt  for  Garrison  Soldiers  ;  And  I  desire  that  you  and 
he  would  agree  upon  the  Distribution  of  them  accordingly, 
vizt  Twenty  Men  for  a  Garrison  at  Northfield,  and  as  many 
at  Colerain,  Thirty  at  the  new  Massachusetts  Fort.  At 
Fort  Shirley,  Fort  Pelham,  the  Blockhouse  at  Fall  Town,  the 
Blockhouses  to  be  built  one  between  Colerain  and  Pelham 
and  the  other  to  the  Westward  of  Fort  Pelham  twenty  Men 
each.  And  you  must  give  Orders  to  the  Commanding  Offi- 
cers of  the  several  Forts  and  Blockhouses  that  will  be  gar- 

^  Original  in  Historical  Society  of  Pennsylvania  Collections. 

383 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

risoned  by  other  Soldiers  than  those  of  Brigadier  Dwights 
Regiment  (as  I  shall  direct  him  to  do  respecting  those  Officers 
in  this  Service  that  are  in  his  Regimt)  to  keep  a  constant 
Scout  from  one  Blockhouse  to  another  to  give  proper  Ad- 
vices and  Signals  of  the  Appearance  of  the  Enemy,  and  to  the 
Commanding  Officer  at  Massachusetts  Fort  to  keep  out  a 
Scout  Westward  of  said  Fort,  and  all  of  them  to  keep  Journals 
of  their  Proceedings  and  transmxit  them  to  you  :  You  must 
put  ten  of  the  Inhabitants  of  Colerain  and  as  many  of  the  In- 
habitants of  Green  River  above  Deerfield  into  the  Pay  of 
the  Province. 

Besides  the  Recruits  you  will  have  from  Brigr  Dwight  for 
the  Garrisons  before  mention'd,  I  shall  order  him  to  draw 
out  a  hundred  Men  for  a  Marching  Company  to  scout  on 
your  Borders,  and  more  especially  for  covering  the  Men  that 
will  be  employed  in  building  the  new  Blockhouses ;  In  the 
disposition  of  which  as  well  as  in  all  matters  relating  to  the 
Defence  of  your  Frontier  I  shall  order  him  to  advise  with 
you  from  time  to  time. 
I  am 
Sir, 

Your  most  Assur'd 
Friend  and  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Colo.  John  Stoddard. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  GIDEON  WANTON  * 

Boston,  May  i8,  1747. 
Sir, 

This  goes  to  inform  Your  Honor,  that  by  despatches 
I  have  received  from  Albany  and  Northampton, 
I  find  that  the  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations  are  generally 
spirited  to  go  to  war  against  the  French  of  Canada ;  that 
divers  parties  are  now  out,  and  others  daily  offering  them- 
selves, which  is  a  point  the  governments  of  New  England 

1  Printed:  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  216. 
384 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

(especially  those  of  the  Massachusetts  and  Connecticut,) 
have  been  laboring  to  carry  ever  since  the  first  of  the  war; 
and  if  this  spirit  be  duly  cherished  and  properly  managed 
and  directed,  it  may,  by  the  blessing  of  God,  prove  of  un- 
speakable benefit  for  the  safety  of  these  colonies. 

I  refer  Your  Honour  to  an  extract  from  Col.  Stoddard's 
letter  to  me,  for  a  more  particular  account  of  this  affair; 
only  I  would  observe,  that  Col.  Johnson  and  Mr.  Lydius, 
whose  influence  on  the  Indians  has  brought  about  this 
great  event,  are  under  such  engagements,  as  they  are  not 
able  to  fulfill  without  proper  supplies  from  these  govern- 
ments ;  and  if  for  want  of  that,  the  Indians  should  suffer  any 
disappointment,  it  is  more  than  probable  that  they  will  be 
disgusted  at  their  being  left  in  the  lurch  by  us,  and  will  fall 
entirely  into  the  interests  of  the  French,  which  will  be  more 
fatal  to  these  colonies  than  any  thing  that  has  yet  befallen 
us. 

Now,  as  there  is  no  General  Court  in  being  in  this  Prov- 
ince, we  can  do  nothing,  at  present,  for  the  furnishing  these 
gentlemen ;  though  our  General  Court  has  entrusted  Mr. 
Lydius  with  this  affair,  and  have  undertaken  to  supply 
him  with  a  considerable  sum  for  this  service,  and  he  has 
made  his  drafts  for  the  payment,  which  will  be  done ;  but 
the  parties  of  Indians  come  so  fast  upon  him  and  Mr.  John- 
son, to  be  fitted  out  for  this  service,  that  what  they  will 
receive  at  present  from  this  government,  will  be  a  very  in- 
considerable part  of  what  they  are  under  engagements  for; 
and  the  gentlemen  seem  to  apprehend  that  there  is  great 
danger  of  their  being  ruined,  and  the  common  cause  suffer- 
ing the  greatest  damage  that  we  can  conceive  of,  unless  they 
be  relieved  from  these  governments. 

I  doubt  not,  sir,  but  your  General  Court,  will,  in  this  criti- 
cal conjuncture,  readily  make  proper  supplies  for  the  en- 
couragement of  the  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations,  for  prose- 
cuting this  war,  and  for  keeping  these  gentlemen  in  heart 
till  an  agreement  may  be  made  between  the  governments 
to  apportion  the  charge  that  has  arisen  or  may  arise  in  this 
important  affair,  among  themselves ;  and  I  shall  lay  this 
VOL.  I  —  2  c  385 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

matter  before  our  General  Court,  at  their  first  meeting,  and 
am  fully  persuaded  they  will  cheerfully  fall  into  all  the  meas- 
ures necessary  for  promoting  this  important  interest. 

You  will  please  to  lay  these  matters  before  your  Assembly 
as  soon  as  possible,  and  let  me  know  their  resolutions  on 
this  affair. 

I  am,  with  great  regard.  Sir, 

Your  most  Obedient  humble  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
The  Hon.  Gideon  Wanton,  Esq. 

DUKE    OF   NEWCASTLE    TO   WILLIAM    SHIRLEY 

[Extract^] 

Whitehall,  30  May,  1747. 
Sir, 

His  Majesty  has  been  pleased  to  direct  me  to  signify  to 
you  his  pleasure  that  you  should  immediately  appoint  a 
meeting  with  Commodore  Knowles,  at  such  place  as  shall 
be  agreed  upon,  and  consider  with  him  the  present  state  of 
Nova  Scotia  and  Louisbourg,  and  take  the  proper  measures 
for  the  defence  of  those  places. 

It  is  His  Majesty's  pleasure  you  should  endeavor  to  com- 
plete from  out  of  the  Americans,  who  are  now  raised  for 
His  Majesty's  service.  Sir  William  Pepperell's  Regiment  and 
your  own. 

Lieut.  Gen.  Phillips's  Regiment,  is,  I  am  afraid,  very 
weak.  I  will,  however,  send  His  Majesty's  orders  to  send 
what  recruits  can  be  got  from  hence ;  and  you  will  als  en- 
deavor to  have  his  Regiment  completed  out  of  the  Americans. 

As  it  is  His  Majesty's  intention  that  the  Americans  should 
be  immediately  discharged,  except  only  such  few  as  are 
mentioned  above,  the  manner  of  discharging  them,  the  satis- 
faction of  their  time,  &c.,  must  be  left  to  Commodore 
Knowles  and  yourself;  the  King,  however,  is  perswaded 
you  will  do  it  as  cheap  as  possible. 

» P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  s,  901,  p.  178. 
386 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

It  Is  also  His  Majesty's  pleasure,  that  Mr.  Knowles  and 
you  should  consider  what  number  of  Americans  will  be  really 
wanted  for  the  service  above  mentioned  ;  and  the  King  would 
have  you  retain  as  many  as  may  be  absolutely  necessary  for 
that  service,  and  no  more ;  and  the  King  hopes  that  a  small 
number  of  Americans,  with  His  Majesty's  forces,  which  you 
have,  may  be  sufficient  for  that  purpose,  as  the  expense  of 
these  Americans  is  very  great ;  and  as  to  the  Americans  in 
general,  except  only  such  as  may  be  wanted  for  the  service 
above  mentioned,  it  is  His  Majesty's  pleasure,  that  you,  in 
conjunction  with  Commodore  Knowles,  should  thank  them 
in  such  manner  as  you  think  proper,  and  immediately  dis^ 
charge  them  upon  the  best  and  cheapest  foot  you  can,  and 
in  order  thereto  you  will  consult  with  the  respective  Gov- 
ernours  upon  the  manner  of  closing  it ;  and  you  shall  trans- 
mit to  His  Majesty  an  immediate  account  of  what  you  shall 
do  therein. 

And  as  these  American  Troops  have  done  little  or  no 
service  hitherto,  it  is  to  be  hoped  they  will  not  expect  to  be 
paid  in  the  manner  they  would  have  been,  had  they  actually 
been  employed  on  service ;  and  it  seems  highly  reasonable 
that  such  of  these  Troops  as  have  remained  in  the  Provinces, 
where  they  were  enlisted,  should  be  contented  with  less  pay 
than  such  of  them  as  may  have  marched  into  other  Prov- 
inces. 

When  you  and  Mr.  Knowles  shall  have  met  and  fully 
considered  the  service  to  be  undertaken,  in  the  manner  above 
directed,  and  shall  have  agreed  what  number  of  Americans 
it  will  be  necessary  to  keep  in  pay  for  that  purpose,  it  Is 
His  Majesty's  pleasure  that  you  should  procure  an  account 
of  the  whole  expense  incurred  on  account  of  the  American 
troops  from  the  time  of  their  being  levied,  to  the  time  of  their 
discharge ;  and  when  the  same  shall  be  fully  adjusted  and 
liquidated,  you  will  transmit  it  to  me,  with  the  proper  vouch- 
ers, from  the  several  Governours,  that  it  may  be  laid  be- 
fore Parliament,  to  the  end  that  provision  may  be  made  for 
the  payment ;  and  in  the  mean  time,  in  order  to  prevent  any 
complaint  amongst  the  men  that  have  been  enlisted,   (as 

387 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

well  those  that  shall  be  discharged,  as  those  that  shall  con- 
tinue in  service,)  for  want  of  immediate  pay,  you  will  rec- 
ommend it  to  the  Governours  of  the  Provinces,  where  these 
levies  have  been  made,  to  procure  credit  from  their  respective 
Assemblies  for  that  purpose,  which  His  Majesty  hopes  may 
be  done  without  difficulty. 


I  am  &ca 

HoLLES  Newcastle. 

*  As  you  and  Mr  Warren  have  represented,  That  an  Opinion 
prevailed  amongst  the  Inhabitants  of  Nova  Scotia,  That  It 
was  intended  to  remove  Them  from  their  Settlements  and 
Habitations  in  that  Province ;  And  as  that  Report  may 
probably  have  been  artfully  spread  amongst  Them  in  order 
to  induce  Them  to  withdraw  Themselves  from  their  Alle- 
giance to  His  Majesty,  and  to  take  Part  with  the  Enemy; 
His  Majesty  thinks  it  necessary,  that  proper  measures  should 
be  taken,  to  remove  any  such  ill-grounded  Suggestions ;  and, 
for  that  Purpose,  it  is  the  King's  Pleasure,  that  you  should 
declare  in  some  publick  and  Authentick  manner  to  His  Maj- 
esty's subjects.  Inhabitants  of  that  Province,  that  there  is 
not  the  least  Foundation  for  any  Apprehension  of  that 
nature ;  But  that,  on  the  contrary,  It  is  His  Majesty's 
Resolution  to  protect,  and  maintain,  all  such  of  them  as 
shall  continue  in  their  Duty,  and  Allegiance  to  His  Majesty, 
in   the  quiet   and  peaceable  Possession  of  their  respective 

^  The  remainder  of  the  text  consists  of  the  opening  paragraphs 
of  a  signed  postscript  to  another  letter  from  Newcastle  to  Shirley 
of  the  same  date  as  the  preceding.  This  letter  is  in  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O. 
5,  45,  p,  268.  The  earlier  part  of  the  manuscript  states  that 
Admiral  Sir  Peter  Warren  is  in  England  on  leave  of  absence,  that 
the  expedition  of  General  St.  Clair  is  not  to  go  to  North  America 
at  the  time  expected,  and  that  consequently  any  such  conquests 
of  Canada  as  had  been  planned  must  be  considered  as  impracti- 
cable for  the  present.  Consideration  is  then  given  to  the  state  of 
Nova  Scotia  for  the  defense  of  which  Shirley  had  been  directed 
to  plan.  \  •       ■  • 

388 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Habitations,  and  Settlements   and   that  they  shall  continue 
to  enjoy  the  free  Exercise  of  their  Religion. 

His  Majesty  did  propose  to  have  signed  a  Proclamation 
to  the  purport  above  mentioned  and  to  have  transmitted  it 
to  you  to  have  been  published  in  Nova  Scotia  ;  But  as  the 
Advices,  that  have  been  received  here,  of  a  Body  of  the  New 
England  Troops,  which  were  advanced  to  Menis  having  been 
surprised  by  a  Party  of  the  French  Canadeans  and  their 
Indians,  and  having  been  either  cut  off,  or  taken  Prisoners, 
And  the  great  Probability  there  is.  That  this  Misfortune 
could  not  have  happened  to  that  Body  of  Troops,  without  the 
Assistance  or,  at  least,  the  Connivance  of  the  Inhabitants  of 
Nova  Scotia,  make  it  very  difficult  to  fix  the  Terms  of  the 
intended  Proclamation ;  His  Majesty  thinks  it  more  advise- 
able  to  leave  it  to  you  to  make  such  a  Declaration  in  His 
Name,  as  you  shall  be  of  Opinion,  the  present  Circumstances 
of  the  Province  may  require. 

******* 

Newcastle. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE  SELECTMEN  OF 

BOSTON ' 

Boston,  June  23d,  1747. 
Gentlemen, 

I  send  you  the  inclos'd  Extract  from  Govr.  Knowles's 
Letter,  that  you  may  Communicate  it  to  the  Town  in  such 
manner  as  you  shall  think  proper.  And  as  I  have  reason  to 
apprehend  from  accounts  I  have  received,  that  the  Fuel 
already  bespoke  in  some  Country  Places  for  the  supply  of 
this  Town  in  the  present  Year,  will  be  raised  before  the 
Winter  is  over  to  a  most  excessive  Price,  unless  it  is  pre- 
vented by  the  importing  a  considerable  quantity  of  wood 
from  the  Eastern  Parts  which  may  be  very  ruinous  to  the 
Poor  of  this  Town  in  particular,  I  would  recommend  it  to 
you  to  Consider  of  some  Method  for  the  Encouragement  of 

^  Original,  Mass.  Archives,  Col.  Ser.  53,  252. 
389 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

bringing  in  a  large  Supply  of  Wood  from  the  Eastern  Parts, 
at  as  Moderate  a  Rate  as  may  be,  in  which  if  I  can  assist  you 
by  granting  protection  for  Safeguarding  the  Men  that  shall 
be  employed  in  Carrying  the  Wood  to  the  Vessels  and  loading 
it  on  board  of  'em  I  shall  be  very  ready  to  do  it,  or  anything 
else  in  my  Power  that  may  be  proposed  to  me  for  the  for- 
warding of  this  affair. 

Your  most  Assured  Friend 

and  Servant. 


W.  Shirley. 


To  the  Selectmen  of  the  Town  of  Boston. 


.  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  GIDEON  WANTON ' 

Boston,  June  29th,  1747. 
Sir, 

This  will  inform  Your  Honor  that  this  government  has  taken 
into  consideration  the  great  danger  which  all  His  Majesty's 
colonies  in  North  America  are  in  (as  well  as  their  own  particu- 
lar danger)  of  being  in  time  destroyed  by  the  French,  and 
Indians  under  their  influence,  without  a  firm  union  be- 
tween themselves,  for  their  mutual  defence,  and  for  weaken- 
ing and  destroying  the  power  of  the  enemy ;  and  more 
especially  for  driving  the  French  from  the  borders  of  the 
Province  of  New  York ;  and  this  Province  has  appointed 
commissioners  to  meet  in  a  congress,  to  be  held  at  New  York, 
on  the  2d  day  of  September  next,  with  such  commissioners 
as   may  be  appointed   by  all  His  Majesty's   governments, 

^  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  219.  Governor  Wanton's  reply  is  dated 
July  3  and  is  as  follows  : 

Sir  :  —  I  received  your  favor  of  29th  June,  and  now  acquaint 
Your  Excellency,  that  it  is  not  in  my  power  to  do  any  thing  other- 
wise than  to  represent  the  matters  therein  contained,  in  as  strong 
terms  as  I  can,  to  our  General  Assembly,  which  will  meet  by  ad- 
journment, the  second  Tuesday  in  August;  and  then  I  shall  be 
capable  of  acquainting  Your  Excellency  of  their  resolutions  there- 
upon. 

I  am,  sir,  your  humble  servant, 

Gideon  Wanton. 
390 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

from  New  Hampshire  to  Virginia,  inclusively ;  then  and 
there  to  treat  and  agree  upon  measures  for  encouraging  the 
Indians  of  the  Six  Nations  vigorously  to  prosecute  their  in- 
cursions on  the  enemy ;  as  also  to  agree  upon  the  method 
and  proportion  of  raising  men  and  money,  for  carrying  on 
the  war,  both  offensively  and  defensively ;  and  to  project 
and  settle  such  enterprises  and  plans  of  operation  as  the 
common  interest  shall  require. 

Your  Honor  will,  I  doubt  not,  duly  consider  the  great 
importance  of  this  matter,  and  represent  It  in  the  strongest 
light  to  your  Assembly,  that  they  may  see  not  only  how 
deeply  His  Majesty's  Interest  in  general  is  concerned,  but 
that  their  own  particular  safety  will  be  soon  much  affected 
by  the  growing  power  of  the  French ;  and  more  especially 
the  hazard  there  is,  that  they  will  bring  the  Six  Nations  Into 
their  interest,  in  case  they  are  not  forthwith  most  vigorously 
supported  by  the  English,  without  which,  it  will  be  a  very 
little  while  before  the  Southern  as  well  as  the  Northern 
colonies  will  be  exposed  to  their  fury.  And  therefore  I  would 
earnestly  recommend  It  to  the  several  governments  sepa- 
rately to  make  provision  without  delay,  for  the  encourage- 
ment of  the  Six  Nations,  till  the  congress  can  be  held ;  this 
government  having  already  advanced  many  large  sums  of 
money,  and  still  continuing  to  do  more  for  this  service. 
Your  Honor  will  be  pleased  to  give  me  seasonable  advice  of 
the  resolution  of  your  government  on  this  most  important 
affair. 

I   am.   Sir,   Your  Honor's  most  Obedient  and  most 
humble  Servant.  W.  Shirley. 

To  the  Hon.  Gideon  Wanton,  Esq. 

P.S.  I  am  to  acknowledge  the  receipt  of  the  favor  of  your 
answer  to  my  last  letter. 


391 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  GEORGE   CLINTON » 

Boston,  July  24,  1747. 
Sir, 

As  it  appears  to  me,  by  the  latest  advices  I  have  received 
from  Albany,  as  well  as  from  what  is  contained  in  the  New 
York  prints,  that  there  is  the  utmost  danger  of  a  total  defec- 
tion of  all  the  Six  Nations  from  us  to  the  French  interest, 
unless  we  do  speedily  and  vigorously  join  with  them  in 
prosecuting  an  Expedition  against  the  French  for  dislodging 
them  from  Crown  point,  as  well  as  from  the  Fort  they  have 
built  much  nearer  to  the  English  settlements,  I  have  Issued 
a  Proclamation  for  summoning  every  Member  of  the  General 
Court  of  this  Province  to  attend  the  consultation,  that  will 
be  had  on  that  affair  upon  the  12th  of  August  next,  and  as 
the  least  loss  of  time  will  greatly  hazard  the  success  of  this 
Enterprise,  if  we  should  engage  In  it,  I  must  intreat  Your 
Excellcy  to  have  the  Assembly  of  your  province  sitting  at  or 
before  that  time,  and  lay  before  them  the  danger  there  is  of 
all  His  Majesty's  Northern  Colonies,  especially  your  Province 
and  ours,  being  soon  depopulated  and  swallowed  up  by  the 
Enemy,  unless  we  now  join  with  the  Six  Nations  without 
delay  in  pursuing  the  War  against  the  Enemy,  and  I  must 
pray  Your  Excellcy  will  give  me  early  advices  of  the  meas- 
ures, Your  Governt  shall  take  in  this  affair,  and  that  in  the 
mean  time  Your  Excellcy  would  send  a  Message  speedily 
to  the  Six  Nations,  that  Your  Governt  and  ours  will  do  all 
In  our  power  for  the  prosecution  of  this  design,  and  for  the 
engaging  the  other  English  Governts  with  us  therein ;  and 
I  would  further  desire  your  Excellcy  to  send  your  circular  let- 
ters, as  soon  as  may  be,  to  this  Governt  and  the  Governts  of 
New  Jersey,  Connecticut,  Rhode  Island  and  New  Hampshire, 
earnestly  recommending  this  affair  to  them. 

I  am  with  the  greatest  regard  —  Sir,  Your  Excellcys  most 
Obedient  and  most  humble  Servant. 

W.  Shirley. 

1  Docts.  rel.  to  Col.  Hist,  of  N.  Y.  6,  382. 
392 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

P.S.  I  should  be  obliged  to  Your  Excellcy  if  you  would 
send  the  inclosed  by  express  to  the  Governt  of  New  Jersey. 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   GEORGE    CLINTON  ^ 

Boston,  August  15,  1747. 
Sir, 

Yesterday  about  noon  I  received  Your  Excellcy's  express 
in  which  I  had  a  large  packet  from  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 
I  have  only  time  to  inform  Your  Excellcy  that  the  expedi- 
tion against  Canada  is  laid  aside  at  present,  the  reasons  of 
which  are  contained  at  large  in  the  Duke  of  Newcastles  letter 
to  me,  an  extract  of  which  I  will  send  you  as  soon  as  possible, 
that  the  consideration  of  disbanding  the  Forces  raised  for  it 
is  referred  to  Mr  Knowles  and  myself,  and  we  are  ordered 
to  consult  with  the  several  Govrs.  as  to  the  manner  of  doing 
it ;  that  Mr  Knowles  and  I  are  to  do  every  thing  necessary 
for  the  settlement  of  Nova  Scotia  forthwith  for  the  protec- 
tion of  that  and  Louisbourg,  and  to  make  use  of  what  part 
of  the  American  Levies  we  judge  requisite  for  that  service, 
and  I  am  commanded  to  compleat  not  only  my  own  Regi- 
ment, but  Genl.  Phillips's  out  of  them,  so  that  Your  Ex- 
cellcy perceives  the  Expedition  against  Crown  Point  must  be 
carried  on  by  Soldiers  in  the  pay  of  the  Colonies,  for,  what- 
ever part  of  the  Levies  that  shall  not  be  retained  for  the 
service  and  defence  of  Nova  Scotia,  are  ordered  to  be  dis- 
charged, as  soon  as  Mr  Knowles  and  I  have  determined 
what  number  is  necessary  for  the  above  mentioned  service, 
and  the  manner  of  doing  it  is  settled  between  us  and  the 
respective  Governours.  This  indeed  I  imagined  and  fore- 
told would  be  the  case,  and  was  the  reason  I  pressed  so  much 
for  the  Expedition's  proceeding  last  year,  not  doubting  but 
his  Majesty's  Ministry  would  be  of  opinion,  that  the  reduction 
of  Fort  Frederick  ought  to  be  undertaken  by  the  Colonies, 
without  any  assistance  from  home. 

1  Docts.  relat.  to  Col.  Hist,  of  N.  Y.  6,  384.  The  letters  re- 
lating to  the  Johnson-Lydius-Stoddard  controversy  are  in  the 
Johnson  Manuscripts,  N.  Y.  State  Library,  23,  40-47. 

393 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

However,  I  impart  this  to  your  Excellcy  now,  in  confi- 
dence, that  it  may  remain  in  your  own  breast  'till  you  hear 
of  it  in  form  by  a  joint  letter  from  me  and  Mr  Knowles. 

I  am  very  sorry  that  Coll :  Johnson  should  take  umbrage 
at  Lydius's,  being  concerned  with  him  in  what  has  been  done 
by  this  Governt  towards  cementing  the  Indians  of  the  Six 
Nations  in  our  interest ;  I  would  not  have  him  imagine  that 
myself  or  any  part  of  the  Governt  put  Lydius's  service  in 
competition  with  his  own,  or  that  these  Indians  have  been 
engaged  in  acts  of  hostility  against  the  French  by  any  per- 
son's influence  but  his  own  under  Your  Excellcys  directions, 
and  his  Uncle  Sir  Peter  Warren  to  whom  my  letters  upon  that 
head  to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  have,  I  believe,  been  shown, 
can  inform  him  that  I  have  done  his  merit  all  the  justice  in 
my  power.  But  Lydius  has  been  a  person  long  known  to 
Coll :  Stoddard  and  this  Government,  and  has  occasionally 
had  the  management  of  small  sums  among  the  Indians  for 
them,  and  for  my  own  part  I  thought  he  stood  extreamly 
well  with  Coll :  Johnson. 

I  am,  Sir,  with  great  Respect 
Your  Excellcy's  etc. 

W.  Shirley. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  GIDEON  WANTON  ^ 

Boston,  August  20,  1747. 
Sir, 

I  send  now  to  inform  Your  Honor,  that  on  the  i6th  inst. 
arrived  here  a  flag  of  truce  from  Quebec,  with  one  hundred 
and  seventy-one  English  prisoners,  belonging  to  this  Prov- 
ince, and  divers  other  of  His  Majesty's  colonies  in  North 
America,  &c.,  by  which  ship  I  received  a  letter  ^  from  the 

1  R.  I.  Col.  Rec.  5,  224. 

2  The  letter  from  the  Marquis  of  Beauharnois,  transmitted  by 
Governor  Shirley,  is  very  long,  and  relates  to  the  exchange  of 
prisoners.  It  is  exceedingly  courteous  in  its  tone,  and  acknowl- 
edges the  kind  attentions  paid  to  the  French  prisoners  in  Boston, 
by  the  authorities  there.     It  appears  that  one  of  them.  Lieutenant 

394 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Marquis  Beauharnols,  Governor  of  Canada,  a  copy  whereof, 
I  now  enclose ;  by  perusing  which,  you  will  understand 
that  I  wrote  to  him  a  letter,  dated  the  i8th  of  March  last, 
therein  proposing  a  general  exchange  of  prisoners,  without 
having  a  regard  to  the  inequality  of  numbers  on  either  side ; 
and  that  each  Governor  should  bear  the  charge  of  the  trans- 
portation of  their  own  prisoners. 

This  I  undertook  (absolutely)  only  for  myself,  yet  presum- 
ing it  would  be  acceptable  to  all  the  rest  of  the  English  Gov- 
ernors ;  and  in  consequence  of  which,  the  said  Governor  of 
Canada  has  now  released  all  the  English  prisoners  with  him, 
except  a  few  that  were  not  in  such  health  as  to  allow  them 
to  be  transported  without  danger;  and  that  the  said  Gov- 
ernor does  fully  agree  to  my  proposal,  expecting  that  the 
other  Governors  will  also  come  into  this  agreement,  desiring 
that  I  should  let  him  know  their  resolutions  by  the  return  of 
this  flag  of  truce,  which  is  limited  to  the  term  of  fifteen  days 
for  his  stay  here,  which  will  expire  the  last  of  this  month. 

Therefore,  I  must  entreat  Your  Honor  to  send  me  your 
answer  upon  these  points  by  this  express,  that  I  may  forward 
it  to  the  Governor  of  Canada,  agreeably  to  his  desire  ex- 
pressed to  me  in  his  letter;  and  as  there  are  now,  and  may 
be  hereafter,  English  prisoners  belonging  to  Great  Britain 
and  other  places,  at  a  distance  from  these  provinces,  brought 
in  by  the  flags  of  truce,  it  will  be  expected  that  your  govern- 
ment will  bear  their  part  of  this  charge,  so  that  it  may  not  be 
wholly  thrown  upon  this. 

And  I  must  further  desire  that  you  would  appoint  some 
agent  here,  who  may  from  time  to  time  answer  for  the  charge 
of  any  English  prisoners  of  your  province,  that  may  be  re- 
leased from  captivity,  in  pursuance  of  this  agreement,  and 

La  Groix,  had  broken  his  parole.  Speaking  of  him,  General 
Beauharnois  says:  This  gentleman,  "by  his  services  and  good 
qualities,  had  merited  some  distinction  from  me ;  but  I  cannot 
but  disapprove  his  having  broken  his  parole,  as  you  assure  me  he 
had  done.  He  can  blame  nobody  but  himself,  that  he  was  put 
under  a  more  close  confinement.  I  am  nevertheless  obliged  to 
you  for  your  goodness  to  him,  on  my  account.  This  particular 
he  has  not  failed  to  inform  me  of." 

395 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

brought  in  hither ;  and  as  there  are  now  brought  in  this  flag 
of  truce  six  prisoners,  that  you  would  be  pleased  to  take  such 
measures,  that  in  proportion  to  the  number  aforesaid,  your 
province  may  bear  their  part  of  the  charge  of  this  flag  of 
truce;  you  will  also  send  me  your  answer  respecting  the 
Governor  of  Canada's  proposal,  as  to  the  purchasing  pris- 
oners out  of  the  Indians'  hands. 

1  have  likewise  enclosed  a  copy  of  the  agreement  made  for 
the  hire  of  this  flag  of  truce,  which  you  will  find  to  be  io,cxx3 
livres.     I  am. 

Sir,  Your  Honor's  most  Obedient  and  most  humble 

Servant,  xxr  ^ 

'  W.  Shirley. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE  OF 
NEWCASTLE » 

My  Lord  Duke,  ^;^^^°"'  ^"^^^^  ^4,  1747- 

The  French  Declaration,  of  which  the  inclos'd  is  a  Copy, 
did  not  come  to  my  hands  till  I  had  finished  the  letter,  which 
accompanies  it:^  And  I  send  it  your  Grace,  as  it  may  serve 
to  shew  the  Views  of  the  French  with  respect  to  Accadie,  the 
Dependance  they  have  upon  the  Dispositions  of  the  Inhabit- 
ants, what  advantage  they  propos'd  to  themselves  from  the 
New  England  Levies  under  the  Command  of  the  late  Lieu- 
tent  Col.  Noble's  quitting  Menis  by  Capitulation,  and  the 
necessity  there  was  of  my  sending  the  last  Detachment  of 
soldiers  to  Mr  Mascarene  to  take  repossession  of  Menis,  and 
make  the  Inhabitants  of  it  renew  their  oath  of  fidelity  to  his 
Majesty  :   which  had  its  desir'd  Effect. 

I  am  with  the  most  DutifuU  regard 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  Most  Devoted, 

and  Most  Obedient  Humble  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 

ip.  R.O,C.  0.5,901,  143- 

2  This  letter,  of  Aug.  18  (C.  O.  5,  901,  140),  contained  the  flag 
of  truce  and  communication  from  Governor  Beauharnois  referred 
to  on  p.  394. 

396 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE  DUKE  OF 
NEWCASTLE  ' 

Boston,  Augt.  31,  1747. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

The  Bearer  Capt.  Shirley  of  my  Regiment  (my  youngest 
son)  will  have  the  honour  of  delivering,  together  with  this, 
to  your  Grace  a  Duplicate  of  Governour  Knowles's  Packet, 
which  he  sent  Express  by  Major  Mercer  of  Sir  William 
Pepperells  Regiment  three  Months  ago  from  Louisbourg, 
containing  an  Acct.  of  the  late  Tumult,  which  happen'd  in 
the  Garrison  upon  his  Publishing  His  Majestys  Orders 
among  the  Soldiers  for  making  a  Stoppage  out  of  their  Pay 
for  their  Provisions. 

Mr.  Knowles  had  charg'd  another  Officer,  who  had  ob- 
tain'd  his  Leave  to  go  to  England  from  hence  with  the  care 
of  'em  ;  But  as  he  had  Countermanded  that  Officer's  Leave, 
and  desir'd  me  to  take  his  packets  from  him,  and  forward  'em 
to  your  Grace,  I  have  committed  'em  to  the  care  of  my  Son, 
who  arriv'd  here  yesterday  from  the  Garrison  with  other 
Officers  upon  the  recruiting  Service,  in  Order  to  raise  men 
for  Compleating  mine  and  Sir  William's  Regiments  out  of 
the  New  American  Levies  pursuant  to  His  Majesty's  Com- 
mands signify'd  to  me  by  your  Grace  in  your  Letter  of  the 
30th  of  May  :  But  as  I  have  Officers  enough  with  me  for  that 
Duty,  without  my  Son,  and  the  safe  delivery  of  Mr.  Knowles's 
Packets  with  the  speedy  return  of  His  Majesty's  pleasure 
upon  'em,  is  an  AflFair  of  great  Consequence  to  His  Majesty's 
Service  in  the  Garrison,  I  have  dispatch'd  my  Son  with  'em 
to  New  York  in  order  to  take  his  passage  there  in  His  Maj- 
esty's Ship  Scarborough  for  England,  where  I  hope  he  will 
safely  Arrive  with  'em. 

He  is  under  Orders  (if  he  should  be  permitted  to  stay  in 
England  till  that  time)  to  return  to  his  Duty  in  the  Garrison 
next  Spring,  unless  he  should  be  favour'd  with  his  Majesty's 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32712,  466.  A  transcript  is  in 
the  Library  of  Congress. 

397 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

leave  to  be  absent  longer  in  order  to  make  a  Campaign  in 
Flanders  for  Experience :  And  as  that  is  the  best  School  for 
a  young  Officer,  and,  I  flatter  myself,  he  is  very  desirous  of 
qualifying  himself  for  His  Majesty's  Service  in  the  Field  in 
the  best  manner  he  can,  I  shall  be  Oblig'd  to  Your  Grace  for 
Procuring  him  that  Honour.  I  would  not  have  him  be  ab- 
sent from  his  post  upon  any  other  account  whatsoever  longer 
than  the  Spring,  being  desirous  of  his  Confining  himself  close 
to  his  Duty. 

As  he  was  in  the  Garrison,  when  the  Mutinous  Disorder 
happen'd  among  the  Soldiers,  he  can  give  your  Grace  a  par- 
ticular Acct  of  it,  if  there  sho'd  be  Occasion. 

I  have  the  Honour  to  be  with  the  most  Dutiful  Regard, 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Devoted,  and 
Most  Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed : 

Boston.  August  31.  1747. 
Govr.  Shirley. 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   GEORGE    CLINTON  ^ 

Boston,  Aug.  31,  1747. 
Sir, 

I  shall  lay  the  extracts  of  Coll :  Johnson's  letters  (which 
contain  matters  of  the  greatest  importance  to  the  Colonies 
at  this  Juncture)  before  the  Council  and  Assembly  to  mor- 
row, and  hope  in  the  mean  time,  that  it  may  be  of  service  for 
Your  Excellcy  to  communicate  them  to  the  Commissrs.  at 
the  Congress.  Nothing  shall  be  wanting  on  my  part  to  as- 
sist in  compleating  what  Your  Excellcy  has  so  happily  and 
even  beyond  our  reasonable  expectations,  made  a  most  con- 
siderable progress  in,  through  the  influence  and  good  man- 

*Docts.  rel.  to  Col.  Hist,  of  N.Y.  6,  385. 
398 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

agement  of  Coll :  Johnson  who  has  a  most  extraordinary 
interest  with  the  Indians,  and  which  he  surprisingly  culti- 
vates and  continually  improves.     I  am, 

Sir,  with  the  greatest  esteem 
Your  Excellcys  most  Obedient 
humble  Servant. 

W.  Shirley. 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   GEORGE    CLINTON 

[Extract^] 

Boston,  Sept.  14,  1747. 
Sir, 

«  *  *  i»  «  «:  « 

As  the  General  Court  was  sitting  when  your  Excellency's 
express  came,  I  communicated  to  the  Council  and  Representa- 
tives- the  extract  of  Coll.  Johnson's  letter  your  Excellency 
sent  me,  that  I  might  try  what  lengths  themselves  would 
go  in  concert  with  your  Assembly  towards  enabling  your 
Excellency  to  improve  the  present  disposition  of  the  Six 
Nations  in  favour  of  his  Majestys  service.  The  result  of 
their  answer  to  me  was  that  the  Commissioners  had  full 
power  to  act  on  their  behalf  for  engaging  the  Indians  in  the 
English  interest  with  your  Commissioners,  to  join  with  this 
Province  in  doing  their  duty  to  their  King  and  Country. 

I  think  after  calling  upon  the  Assembly  in  the  manner  you 
have  done,  to  provide  for  the  expence  of  keeping  the  Indians 
employed  in  His  Majesty's  service  and  preventing  'em  from 
going  over  to  the  French  interest,  which  they  will  infallibly  do 
if  they  are  not  supported  by  us  and  kept  in  action,  and  your 
Assembly's  refusal  to  make  such  provision,  as  they  seem 
hitherto  to  have  done,  will  also  hinder  likewise  this  Govern- 
ment and  all  the  rest  from  doing  any  thing  toward  it ;  I  say 
your  Excellency  may  safely  engage  in  such  expence  on  behalf 

^  Docts.  rel.  to  Col.  Hist,  of  N.  Y.  6,  398.  Johnson's  letter  of 
Aug.  13  to  Clinton  here  mentioned  is  in  the  Johnson  Manuscripts, 
N.  Y.  State  Library,  23,  46. 

399 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  the  Crown,  as  shall  be  requisite  at  this  most  critical  junc- 
ture, to  keep  the  Indians  firm  in  the  fidelity,  and  in  case  the 
Colonies  should  contribute  any  thing  towards  defraying  the 
charge,  but  not  sufficiently  for  that  purpose,  that  your  Ex- 
cellency may  supply,  on  account  of  the  Crown,  what  the 
Colonies  shall  fall  short  of  doing  towards  it;  as  you  have 
already  begun  to  do,  I  think  in  the  most  prudent  manner  by 
your  orders  to  Coll :  Johnson. 

The  reasons  upon  which  I  ground  my  advice  are,  that  His 
Majesty  has  declared  by  the  Duke  of  Newcastle's  letter  of 
the  9th  of  April  1746  his  dependance  upon  the  assistance  of 
the  Indians  as  his  allies  and  friends  from  the  beginning  of 
the  intended  expedition  against  Canada,  that  presents  have 
been  constantly  made  them  at  the  expence  of  the  Crown  for 
retaining  them  in  their  fidelity,  and  that  yor  Excellency,  as 
His  Majesty's  Govr  of  New  York  has  the  immediate  care  of 
doing  this  committed  to  you  by  His  Majesty. 

I  can't  but  think  for  these  reasons  that  your  Excellency's 
engaging  in  the  necessary  expences  on  the  part  of  the  Crown 
for  promoting  His  Majesty's  service  in  so  essential  a  branch 
of  it,  will  be  approved  of  by  the  Ministry.  And  I  herein 
advise  your  Excellency  to  what  I  would  do  my  self  was  I 
under  the  same  circumstances  with  you.  I  am,  with  the 
greatest  respect 

Sir, 
Your  Excellency's  most  Obedient 
humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 


400 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

DUKE   OF   NEWCASTLE   TO   WILLIAM    SHIRLEY 

[Extracts]  ^ 

Whitehall,  Octr.  3d,  1747. 
Sir, 

You  will  have  seen  by  my  Letter  abovementioned  of  May 
30th  ^  His  Majesty's  great  Attention  to  the  Security  of  the 
important  Province  of  Nova  Scotia,  by  Directing  you  to 
appoint  a  Meeting  with  Mr  Knowles,  and  to  consider  with 
him  the  present  State  of  Nova  Scotia,  as  well  as  Louisbourg, 
and  to  take  the  proper  Measures  for  the  Defence  of  those 
Places,  against  any  Attempt,  that  might  be  made  upon  Them, 
or  any  Part  of  Them,  from  the  Canadeans,  or  any  Force, 
that  could  be  brought  by  the  French,  in  North  America,  in 
Conjunction  with  the  Indians  ;  And  also  to  put  every  Thing 
in  as  good  a  Condition,  as  possible,  that,  if  any  Force  should 
be  sent  from  Europe,  against  them.  The  Places  most  exposed 
in  Nova  Scotia,  and  particularly  Annapolis,  might  be  enabled 
to  hold  out  till  sufficient  Force  could  be  sent  from  Europe, 
for  their  Defence ;  which  would  be  done,  as  soon  as  there 
should  be  Reason  to  think ;  that  any  Force  was  sent  from 
France  to  molest  Them,  And  for  this  Purpose,  I  acquaint'd 
you  with  His  Majesty's  Pleasure,  that  you  and  Mr  Knowles 
should  consider,  what  number  of  Americans  would  be  really 
wanted  for  the  Services  abovementioned ;  and  that  you 
should  retain  so  many,  as  should  be  absolutely  necessary  for 
that  Purpose. 

In  consequence  of  these  Orders,  His  Majesty  concludes 
you  will  have  immediately  taken  the  necessary  steps,  not 
only  for  the  Defence  of  Annapolis,  or  any  other  Place,  in 
the  Province  of  Nova  Scotia,  that  may  have  been  exposed 
to  be  attacked  by  the  French ;  But  that  you  will  have  been 
even    enabled    to    act   offensively    against   Them,   and    to 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  901,  p.  152.  A  note  on  the  manuscript 
states :  "This  Draught  was  settled  with  Lord  Anson  and  Sir  Peter 
Warren,  and  humbly  submitted  to  His  Majesty's  Approbation." 

^  Ante,  p.  386. 

VOL.  I — 2D  401 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

drive  Them  from  the  Settlement  they  were  making  at 
Schiegnecto ;  especially  as  the  News  of  the  Success  of  His 
Majesty's  Squadron,  by  intercepting  Mons'r  Jonquiere,  with 
the  Reinforcement  bound  to  North  America  could  not  but 
greatly  discourage  the  Enemy,  if  not  oblige  them  entirely  to 
lay  aside  their  Design,  and  animate  His  Majesty's  Subjects 
to  act  with  Vigour  against  Them.  And  the  King  is  per- 
suaded you  will  have  done  everything  in  your  Power  to  im- 
prove so  favourable  an  Opportunity  to  the  best  Advantage, 
for  the  Disappointment  of  the  Designs  of  the  Enemy,  and  the 
Security  of  Nova  Scotia.  But  in  case  the  French  Troops 
should  still  remain  at  Schiegnecto,  His  Majesty  thinks  it  of 
the  greatest  Consequence  to  the  Security  of  the  Province, 
That  They  should,  if  possible,  be  driven  from  thence,  in  the 
Course  of  the  Winter;  And  the  King  has  that  Dependance 
upon  your  Zeal,  and  Attention  to  the  Publick  Service,  that 
His  Majesty  doubts  not,  but  you  will  exert  your  utmost  En- 
deavours for  that  purpose.  His  Majesty  was  pleased  to 
direct  that  Lord  Anson  and  Sir  Peter  Warren  should  con- 
sider the  Proposal  contained  in  your  Letter  of  July  8th  that 
Mr  Knowles  should  detach  looo  men  out  of  the  Garrison  at 
Louisbourg,  to  be  join'd  by  2000  from  New  England,  at  An- 
napolis ;  and  from  thence  proceed  to  drive  the  French  from 
Schiegnecto ;  And  They  are  of  Opinion  that  the  Season  is 
already  so  far  advanced,  that  it  will  be  impracticable  to  send 
any  Detachment  from  Louisbourg. 

For  the  better  security  of  Annapolis,  against  any  possible 
Attempt  that  may  be  made  upon  it  during  the  Winter ;  The 
Lords  Commissioners  of  the  Admiralty  have  sent  Directions 
for  one  of  His  Majesty's  Ships  to  go  thither  and  remain  there, 
during  the  whole  Winter :  And  I  am  to  acquaint  you  with 
His  Majesty's  Pleasure,  That  you  should  immediately  hire 
two  Sloops  or  Schooners  (such  as  you  shall  judge  proper  for 
the  Service)  and  send  them  to  Annapolis,  there  to  remain 
under  the  Orders  of  the  Commander  of  His  Majesty's  Ship, 
that  shall  be  stationed  there ;  or  (in  his  Absence)  of  the 
Commanding  Officer  of  the  Garrison. 


402 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

In  case  you  should  have  the  good  Fortune  to  succeed  in 
driving  the  French  out  of  Nova  Scotia,  this  Winter ;  It  has 
been  represented  to  His  Majesty  That  It  would  be  of  great 
use  to  erect  a  small  Fort  upon  the  Isthmus  (which,  as  it  is 
proposed  to  be  built  of  Wood,  may  be  done,  in  a  short  Time, 
and  at  a  small  Expence)  in  order  to  prevent  their  Return 
into  Nova  Scotia. 

It  is  His  Majesty's  Pleasure,  that  you  should  take  this 
Proposal  into  your  Consideration  and  give  such  Directions 
in  it,  as  you  shall  think  most  for  His  Majesty's  Service. 
*  *  *  *     •        *  *  * 

I  need  say  nothing  to  you  upon  the  great  Importance  It 
is  of,  to  destroy  the  French  Settlement  at  Crown  Point ;  ^  if 
possible,  you  will  I  doubt  not  omit  nothing  in  your  Power, 
that  may  promote  the  Execution  of  that  Work.^ 

*»*♦**# 

Tho'  I  hope  there  is  no  Occasion,  I  send  you  a  Duplicate 
of  my  Letter  of  May  30th.  I  have  nothing  to  add  upon  any 
of  the  Points  therein  contained,  but  that  His  Majesty  ex- 
pects His  Orders  shall  have  been  punctually  obeyed ;  as  well 
with  regard  to  the  Discharging  the  Men,  that  may  have 
been  raised  in  the  several  Provinces  for  the  designed  Expedi- 
tion against  Canada,  as  for  the  retaining  such  as  you  shall 
have  found  necessary  for  the  Defence  of  Nova  Scotia,  the 
Security  of  which  is  of  such  great  Importance  that  I  cannot 
too  earnestly  recommend  it  to  you  ;  and  for  which  you  will 
take  any  Measures  that  you  shall  judge  necessary,  which  may 
not  have  occurr'd  to  the  King  here. 

His  Majesty  is  very  sensible,  from  what  has  lately  hap- 
pened, how  much  that  valuable  Possession  is  exposed ;  And 
therefore  It  is  the  King's  Pleasure  that  you  should  not  only 
do  every  thing  that  is  necessary  (as  I  have  before  men- 
tioned) for  it's  present  Security :   But  also  that  you  should 

^  See  Shirley  and  Clinton  to  the  Lords  of  Trade,  Aug.  18,  1748, 
post,  p.  449. 

^  Following  this  reference  to  Crown  Point  is  a  proposal  to  trans- 
plant the  French  inhabitants  of  the  District  of  Schiegnecto  to 
New  England. 

403 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

transmit  hither,  for  His  Majesty's  Consideration  a  Scheme 
for  the  Civil  Government  of  the  Province,  whereby  the  In- 
habitants may  be  secured  to  His  Majesty's  Obedience,  and 
also  for  the  Erecting  such  Forts,  and  making  such  Works, 
as  may  be  sufficient  hereafter  for  defending  it  against  any 
Attempt  that  may  be  made  upon  it.^ 

His  Majesty  has  observed  that  you  are  so  well  acquainted 
with  that  Country,  and  have  been  so  instrumental  in  the 
Preservation  of  it,  that  the  King  is  persuaded  these  His 
Orders,  could  not  be  sent  to  any  Person,  more  willing  or  able 
to  execute  Them  than  yourself.  And  It  is  His  Majesty's 
Pleasure,  that  all  His  Officers  and  Subjects  whom  it  may 
concern,  shall  be  assisting  to  you  in  the  Execution  of  these 
His  Majesty's  Commands. 

*  4:  *  *  ♦  ♦  * 

I  am  &ca 

HoLLEs  Newcastle. 

Endorsed : 

Draught  to  Governor  Shirley 
October  3d  1747. 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE  OF 
NEWCASTLE 

[Extract^] 

.    Boston,  Oct.  20,  1747. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

*  ^  4>  *  4:  *  4e 

The  general  Inclination  which,  the  French  Inhabitants  of 
Nova  Scotia  have  to  the  French  Interest,  proceeds  from  their 
Ties  of  Consanguinity  to  the  French  of  Canada,  but  more 
especially  from  those  of  their  Religion,  which  last  seems  to 

^  The  plan  for  the  government  of  Nova  Scotia  here  ordered  was 
submitted  by  Shirley  Feb.  27,  1748-9.     See  post^  p.  470. 

2  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  45,  p.  33.  Inclosed  in  this  letter  is  a  printed 
copy  of  Shirley's  proclamation  to  the  French  inhabitants  of  Nova 
Scotia. 

404 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

put  'em  greatly  under  the  Influence  of  their  Priests,  who 
continually  receive  their  Directions  from  the  Bishop  of 
Quebeck/  and  are  the  Instruments,  by  which  the  Governour 
of  Canada  makes  all  his  Attempts  for  the  Reduction  of  the 
Province  to  the  French  Crown,  and  Keeps  the  Indians  of 
Nova  Scotia  (commonly  called  the  Cape  Sable  Indians)  in 
their  Dependence  upon  him. 

Wherefore  as  his  Majesty  has  been  pleas'd  to  refer  it  to 
my  Opinion  to  fix  the  Terms  of  the  Declaration,  which  he  has 
commanded  me  to  make  in  his  Name  to  the  Inhabitants  of 
Nova  Scotia ;  whereby  it  became  my  Duty  to  avoid  every 
thing  in  it,  which  appear'd  to  me  to  have  a  Tendency  to  dis- 
serve his  Government  within  that  Province,  I  have  taken 
the  Liberty  to  suspend  promissing  'em  the  free  Exercise  of 
the  Romish  Religion,  tho'  it  is  mention'd  in  your  Grace's 
Letter  to  have  been  part  of  what  was  at  first  propos'd  to 
have  been  included  in  his  Majesty's  intended  Proclamation, 
till  I  could  transmit  my  Sentiments  to  your  Grace,  and  I 
should  have  his  Majesty's  farther  Directions  upon  it ;  and 
have  in  the  mean  time  made  a  Declaration  of  such  Points, 
as  seem'd  necessary  to  be  ascertained  to  the  Inhabitants  for 
quieting  their  Minds,  and  would  not  admit  of  Delay. 

I  might  mention  to  your  Grace  some  local  Reasons  for  my 
Omitting  in  the  Declaration  what  I  have  done,  but  shall  not 
presume  to  trouble  you  with  any  but  what  I  thought  it  my 
indispensable  Duty  to  lay  before  your  Grace. 
I  am  with  the  most  dutiful  Regard 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Devoted 

and  most  Obedient  Servant, 


W.  Shirley. 


*See  footnote,  post,  p.  483. 


40s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  JOSIAH  WILLARD » 

Castle  William,  Novr.  the  19th,  1747. 
Sir, 

After  suffering  the  Insults  of  an  Outrageous  Mob  at  Bos- 
ton on  Tuesday  forenoon  by  having  my  House  beset,  and 
one  of  the  under  Sheriffs,  who  was  plac'd  at  my  Door,  dragg'd 
away  from  thence,  beat,  plundered,  and  put  in  the  Stocks ; 
and  great  outrages  committed  at  night  in  a  Rebellious 
manner  upon  myself  and  his  Majesty's  Council,  by  being 
surrounded  in  the  Council  Chamber  by  an  Arm'd  Mob,  and 
assaulted  there  with  Brickbats ;  and  by  their  forcibly  en- 
tering the  lower  floor  of  the  Townhouse,  and  afterwards  by 
the  same  Mob's  Assembling  at  night  before  my  House  in  a 
Tumultuous  Manner,  and  threatning  to  burn  a  Barge,  which 
they  thought  belong'd  to  His  Majesty,  in  my  Court  yard ; 
possessing  themselves  of  the  Gates  of  the  Town,  and  threat- 
ning to  seize  all  the  Officers  of  his  Majesty's  Navy  then  in 
Town  and  detain  'em  as  Hostages,  and  Subject  'em  to  the 
Violence  of  their  Lawless,  Arbitrary  Will  in  Defiance,  and  to 
the  overthrow  of  his  Majesty's  Government :  And  finding 
myself  without  a  proper  force  for  suppressing  this  Insurrec- 
tion, and  maintaining  the  King's  Authority  in  the  Town ; 
the  soldiers  of  the  Militia  there  having  refus'd  and  neglected 
to  obey  my  Orders  given  'em  by  their  Officers  to  appear  in 
Arms  for  quelling  the  Tumult,  and  to  keep  a  Military  watch 
at  night,  and  there  being  reason  to  apprehend,  the  Insurrec- 
tion was  secretly  Countenanc'd  and  encourag'd  by  some 
ill  minded  Inhabitants  and  Persons  of  Influence  in  the  Town  ; 
and  that  the  same  rebellious  rout  would  be  repeated  the 
night  following ;  I  did  not  think  it  consistent  wth  the  Honour 
of  his  Majesty's  Government  to  remain  longer  in  the  midst  of 
it,  destitute  of  all  proper  means  for  suppressing  it,  preserving 
the  Peace,  and  protecting  his  Majesty's  Subjects  committed 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  45,  p.  50.  Compare  this  letter  with  those 
to  the  Lords  of  Trade  and  to  the  Duke  of  Newcastle,  post,  pp. 
412  and  420,  when  Shirley  is  defending  his  colony. 

406 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

to  my  Care.  But  I  have  retir'd  to  his  Majesty's  Castle  Wil- 
liam, 'till  I  can  assemble  a  sufficient  force  of  the  Province 
Militia  from  the  Neighbouring  regiments  in  the  Country, 
to  quell  the  Rebellious  Tumult;  and  restore  his  Majesty's 
Government,  and  the  Publick  Tranquillity  in  the  Town  of 
Boston  ;  for  which  purpose  I  would  have  you  forthwith  issue 
out  Orders  to  the  Colonels  of  the  several  Regiments  of  the 
Towns  of  Cambridge,  Roxbury  and  Milton,  and  of  the 
Regiment  of  Horse,  to  cause  the  OfRcers  and  Soldiers  of  their 
respective  Regiments  to  hold  themselves  in  readiness  to 
march  at  an  hour's  warning  to  such  place  of  Rendez-vous,  as 
I  shall  further  Order;  which  I  hope  together  with  such 
Officers  and  Gentlemen  of  the  Town  of  Boston,  upon  whose 
Duty  and  Attachmt  to  the  King's  Government  I  can  depend, 
will  be  sufficient  strength  to  enable  me  to  support  the  Mag- 
istrates of  the  Town  of  Boston  (of  whose  Duty  and  Zeal  for 
his  Majesty's  Service,  I  receiv'd  an  undoubted  Mark  in 
their  Message  to  me  upon  this  Occasion  by  Col :  Hutchinson  ;) 
the  Sheriff  and  Inferior  Civil  Officers  in  Discharging  their 
respective  Duties  for  the  maintenance  of  his  Majesty's 
Government  and  restoring  the  Publick  peace ;  and  at  the 
same  time,  I  would  have  you  draw  up  Letters  to  be  sent  with 
those  Orders,  to  the  several  Colonels  purporting  the  Occa- 
sion of  'em,  and  my  Dependance  upon  the  Duty  and  Zeal 
of  their  respective  regiments  for  his  Majesty's  Service ;  and 
then  transmit  the  Orders  and  Letters  to  me  fairly  wrote,  to 
be  sign'd  and  immediately  forwarded. 

I  would  also  have  you  take  the  first  Opportunity  to  com- 
municate this  Letter  to  the  Gentlemen  of  his  Majesty's 
Council  and  House  of  Representatives,  and  let  'em  know  that 
I  am  greatly  concern'd  at  their  being  disturb'd  in  the  Pub- 
lick business  by  this  rebellious  Riot  and  Tumult ;  that  I 
desire  they  would  proceed  in  it,  and  that  I  will  concurr  with 
them  in  any  measures  for  his  Majesty's  service  and  the 
Interest  of  the  Province,  and  doubt  not  from  their  known 
Zeal  for  both,  of  being  enabl'd  with  their  Assistance  to  set 
all  things  right  now,  and  prevent  such  routs  in  the  Town  of 
Boston  and  Breaches  in  his  Majesty's  Government  within 

407 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  Province  for  the  future.  I  shall  be  likewise  glad  of  the 
Advice  of  the  Gentlemen  of  the  Council  upon  this  Occasion 
and  seeing  'em  here  for  that  purpose  if  they  think  his  Maj- 
esty's Service  requires  it. 

Inclos'd  I  send  you  Governour  Knowles's  answer  to  the 
Letter,  which  I  sent  to  him  yesterday  and  read  over  to  you 
first,  and  which  I  am  sorry  has  not  produc'd  yet  the  Dis- 
mission of  the  Inhabitants  of  the  Province  lately  Impress'd 
and  Carried  on  board  his  Squadron,  as  also  of  many  other 
Seamen  belonging  to  outward  bound  Vessells ;  which  I  am 
satisfy'd  he  would  have  done  instantly,  had  not  the  outrages 
committed  on  his  Officers,  and  the  King's  Government  pre- 
vented him;  and  I  am  sorry  to. hear  that  further  Obstruc- 
tions are  laid  in  my  way  by  the  Mob's  seizing  and  detaining 
Captn  Erskine,  as  also  some  petty  officers  last  night  in  their 
Custody ;  but  I  have  the  satisfaction  to  find  that  my  Answer 
to  Mr  Knowles's  Letter  from  hence  has  prevented  him  from 
putting  his  resolutions  in  Execution ;  which  had  I  remain'd 
in  Boston,  nothing  would  have  hinder'd  :  I  likewise  receiv'd 
another  Letter  from  him  between  three  and  four  o'clock  this 
morning  with  an  offer  of  two  hundred  marines  to  reinforce 
the  Castle  and  that  he  would  come  in  Person  with  'em  :  but 
I  instantly  excus'd  my  self  from  accepting  his  Offer  (as  what 
must  have  cast  a  reflection  upon  the  Loyalty  and  Duty  of 
the  whole  Province  to  his  Majesty)  by  letting  him  know 
that  I  did  not  retire  here  for  safety  to  my  Person,  but  only 
to  shew  a  publick  Mark  of  my  Resentment  at  the  behaviour 
of  the  Town  of  Boston  upon  this  occasion,  and  'till  I  had 
collected  a  sufficient  force  of  the  Country  Militia  to  quell 
the  Insurrection :  and  that  I  had  not  the  least  apprehension 
of  the  Castle's  being  in  Danger  from  any  Mob. 

I  found  this  morning  he  had  bro't  three  of  his  Ships  nearer 
to  the  Castle,  and  I  hear  designs  to  come  nearer  the  next 
Tide :  But  as  I  shall  dine  on  board  of  him  today  I  will  en- 
deavour to  divert  him  from  such  thoughts  and  Influence 
him  to  Discharge  the  Inhabitants  and  as  many  others  as  I 
can  in  the  end ;  but  can't  promise  success  from  the  present 
Temper,  I  hear,  he  is  in  at  Captn  Erskine's  being  in  the 

408 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Mob's  possession  ;  which  I  earnestly  wish  could  be  forthwith 
remedy'd :  I  have  only  to  add  that  notwithstanding  I  think 
the  Soldiers  of  the  Militia  of  the  Town  of  Boston  have  been 
very  tardy  in  their  Duty  on  this  Occasion,  and  behav'd  very 
ill,  I  shall  be  concern'd  at  fixing  a  lasting  Brand  upon  the 
Town  for  their  failure  in  it ;  and  therefore  notwithstanding 
my  beforemention'd  Orders  (which  yet  I  will  not  have  sus- 
pended) if  they  will  Obey  the  Orders  they  have  recelv'd  by 
appearing  forthwith  under  arms  and  exert  themselves  Vigor- 
ously in  Dispersing  the  Mob,  and  securing  the  ringleaders 
and  enforcing  the  Execution  of  the  Civil  Authority,  so  as 
that  I  may  be  sure  of  finding  my  self  in  a  condition  of  sup- 
porting his  Majesty's  Government  in  the  Town,  and  obtain- 
ing satisfaction  for  the  Indignities  oifer'd  to  it,  and  for  the 
Rebellious  Breaches  of  the  peace ;  without  my  calling  in 
the  Aid  of  the  Country  Regiments,  I  will  yet  give  'em  an 
opportunity  of  retrieving  their  own  Honour,  and  my  good 
Opinion  of  'em,  and  preventing  an  infamous  reproach  upon 
the  Duty  and  Loyalty  of  the  Town. 

It  is  fit  all  Grievances  should  be  enquir'd  into  and  re- 
dress'd  so  far  as  it's  in  the  power  of  this  Government  to  do 
it,  but  I  am  sure  the  people  have  suifer'd  no  Grievance  from 
the  Government  upon  this  Account. 
I  am.  Sir, 

Your  most  assur'd  Friend 
and  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Examin'd, 

W.  Shirley. 

Mr  Secretary  Willard. 

Endorsed: 

Copy  of  Govr  Shirley's  Letter 

to  Secretary  Willard  from 

Castle  William  dated  19  Novr  1747. 


409 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY.     PROCLAMATION » 

By  his  Excellency  William  Shirley  Esqr 
Captain  General  and  Governour  in  Chief 
in  and  over  his  Majty's  Province  of  the 
Massachusetts  Bay  in  New  England. 

A  Proclamation 

Whereas  within  these  few  days  past  there  has  been  a  no- 
torious and  dangerous  Insurrection  in  the  Town  of  Boston 
of  a  great  number  of  Seamen  and  other  lewd  and  profligate 
Persons,  who  being  armed  with  Cutlasses  and  other  Weapons, 
contrary  to  the  Peace  of  our  Sovereign  Lord  the  King,  and 
in  Terror  of  his  liege  People,  did  in  a  tumultuous  and  out- 
ragious  manner  beset  the  Province  House,  and  offered  to 
break  into  it,  and  there  to  seize  divers  Officers  belonging  to 
his  Majesty's  Navy  who  had  retired  thither  for  their  safety, 
and  also  wounded  the  Sheriif  of  the  County  of  Suffolk,  while 
in  the  Execution  of  his  Office,  and  surrounded  the  Court 
House  in  the  Evening  while  the  General  Court  were  sitting, 
with  other  outragious  Insults  on  the  Authority  of  this  Gov- 
ernment. 

I  have  therefore  thought  fit  with  the  Advice  of  his  Majesty's 
Council,  and  at  the  desire  of  the  House  of  Representves,  to 
issue  this  Proclamation,  hereby  requiring  all  Persons  what- 
soever concerned  in  the  said  Riot  and  Insurrection,  forth- 
with to  surrender  themselves  up  to  Justice,  as  they  would 
avoid  the  utmost  Extremity  of  Law,  and  would  render  them- 
selves more  suitable  Objects  of  the  King's  Mercy  :  And  all 
Officers  and  other  his  Majesty's  Subjects  are  commanded  to 
use  their  utmost  Endeavours  for  the  discovery  of  the  said 
Rioters,  and  all  Persons  concerned  in  abetting  and  encour- 
aging them  in  their  late  insolent  Riot,  and  for  the  seizing  and 
securing  them,  that  so  they  may  be  brought  to  Justice,  and 
suffer  condign  Punishment :  And  all  Persons  whatsoever  are 

1  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  886. 
410 


'■p"K-'*«^*'V^»MS«-^^^^W— 


*v  J  A-efl  ]/f/ji  /3.  /9//0, 


■0nL  u/i 


.jpa-mAi^-fiurc^  LqySJnL  u/us/iJ  /7iji^(J//a^r  'cf/''^ar^b  -*°>~. 


uanimeiriffu  co.  i/pu  mt£i 


■m  oU  tre£-iJe.J^j  fkeJ  /ie/urrt of^/hs  JOoa/i  </  af  !/'raJiL.  u/i.anjoJ^f  /^Ju. 


^,^ 


/      / 


?0 


'rai)/jn-cS-'  uri-  J 


0-     ■  lJ- 


trt/ 


;7^ 


'O/ri/^j 


From  the  original  in  the  Massachusetts  State  Library.    See  page  498L 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

commanded  at  their  utmost  Peril,  and  as  they  would  avoid 
being  proceeded  against  as  Associates  in  the  said  Offence,  not 
to  harbour,  entertain  or  conceal  any  of  the  said  Rioters,  or 
any  of  their  Encouragers,  Abettors  or  Accomplices. 

And  for  the  Encouragement  of  all  Persons  to  do  their 
Duty  in  bringing  to  condign  Punishment  the  Offenders  above- 
mentioned,  such  Persons  as  shall  detect  and  inform  against 
anyone  of  the  Heads  or  Ringleaders  in  exciting  and  fomenting 
the  said  Insurrection,  or  in  leading  them  on  to  perpetrate  the 
said  Crimes,  so  that  they  be  legally  convicted  thereof,  they 
shall  receive  out  of  the  publick  Treasury  One  hundred  Pounds 
old  Tenour,  as  a  Reward  for  their  good  Service,  and  propor- 
tionably  for  more.  And  for  the  further  Encouragemt  of  any 
Persons  that  have  been  concerned  in  the  sd  Insult  to  inform 
of  the  said  Heads  or  Ringleaders,  they  may  be  assured,  that 
if  upon  their  Information  any  of  them  be  convicted,  the 
Informers  shall  be  excused  from  Punishment. 

And  his  Majesty's  good  Subjects  may  be  assured  that  all 
due  care  shall  be  taken  to  protect  them  in  their  just  Rights 
and  Liberties,  and  for  redressing  every  Greivance. 

Given  at  the  Council  Chamber  in  Boston  the  twenty  first 
day  of  November  1747,  in  the  twenty  first  year  of  the  Reign 
of  our  Sovereign  Lord  George  the  Second  by  the  Grace  of 
God  of  Great  Britain,  France  and  Ireland  King,  Defender  of 
the  Faith  &ca. 

W.  Shirley. 
By  Order  of  the  Govr.  with 
the  Advice  of  the  Council 

J.  WiLLARD.     Secry. 

God  save  the  King 

Copy  examined  pr  J.  Willard  Secry. 

Endorsed: 

Copy  of  Govr  Shirley's 
Proclamation  dat.  21  Novr 
1747  for  Apprehending 
Rioters. 

411 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE  LORDS   OF  TRADE » 

Boston,  December  the  1st,  1747. 
My  Lords, 

A  riot,  and  Insult  upon  the  King's  Government  lately 
happen'd  here  of  so  extraordinary  a  nature,  that  I  think  it 
my  Duty  to  give  your  Lordships  an  Account  of  it. 

It  was  occasion'd  by  an  Impress  made  on  the  sixteenth 
of  November  at  night  out  of  all  the  Vessels  in  this  Harbour, 
by  Order  of  Commodore  Knowles,  then  on  Board  the  Can- 
terbury, for  manning  his  Squadron ;  in  which  he  confin'd 
himself  to  the  Vessels  on  float,  and  with  design  I  am  per- 
swaded,  to  release  upon  a  proper  Application  the  Inhabit- 
ants of  the  Town  (three  of  which  being  Carpenter's  Ap- 
prentices happen'd  to  be  taken  by  the  Press  Gang  in  their 
general  sweep)  and  as  many  of  the  Seamen  belonging  to 
outward  bound  Vessells,  as  could  reasonably  be  desir'd ;  but 
the  Tumult,  which  this  proceeding  produc'd,  began  early 
the  next  day  before  he  was  apply'd  to  for  the  discharge  of  any 
of  the  Impress'd  Men,  or  had  an  Account  given  him  of  'em. 

The  first  notice,  I  had  of  the  Mob,  was  given  me  between 
nine  and  ten  o'clock  in  the  forenoon  by  the  Speaker  of  the 
House  of  Representatives,  who  had  Pick'd  up  in  the  Streets 
Captain  Derby  of  his  Majesty's  Ship  Alborough,  and  the 
Purser  of  the  Canterbury,  and  brought  'em  under  his  Pro- 
tection to  me  for  Shelter  in  my  House  acquainting  me  at  the 
same  time,  that  the  Mob  consisted  of  about  three  hundred 
Seamen,  all  Strangers,  (the  greatest  part  Scotch)  with  Cut- 
lasses and  Clubs,  and  that  they  had  seiz'd  and  detain'd  in 
their  Custody  a  Lieutenant  of  the  Lark,  whom  they  met 
with  at  his  lodgings  on  Shoar ;  The  next  notice  I  had  was 
about  half  an  hour  after  by  the  Sheriff  of  the  County,  who 
with  some  of  his  Officers  had  been  in  pursuit  of  the  Mob  in 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  886.  There  is  a  duplicate  of  this  letter  in 
the  same  volume  varying  in  minor  respects  from  the  copy  selected 
for  printing,  and  a  brief  reply  of  the  Lords  of  Trade,  dated  June 
18,  1748,  is  in  C.  O.  5,  918,  p.  210. 

412 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

order  to  recover  the  Man  of  War's  Lieutenant,  and  to  en- 
deavour to  disperse  'em ;  and  who  coming  up  with  four  of 
'em  separated  from  the  others,  had  wrested  a  Cutlass  from 
one  and  selz'd  two  of  'em  ;  but  being  overtaken  by  the  whole 
Mob,  (who  were  appriz'd  of  this)  as  he  was  carrying  those 
two  to  Goal,  was  assaulted,  and  Grievously  wounded  by  'em, 
and  forc'd  to  deliver  up  his  two  Prisoners,  and  leave  one  of 
his  Deputies  in  their  hands,  for  whose  life  he  assur'd  me  he 
was  in  fear. 

Thereupon  I  immediately  sent  Orders  to  the  Colonel  of 
the  Regiment  to  raise  the  Militia  of  the  Town  and  suppress 
the  Mob  by  force,  and,  if  need  was,  to  fire  upon  'em  with 
Ball ;  which  were  scarcely  deliver'd  to  him,  when  they  ap- 
pear'd  before  my  Gates,  and  part  of  'em  advanc'd  directly 
through  my  Court  yard  up  to  my  Door  with  the  Lieutenant, 
two  other  Sea  Officers  and  Mr  Knowles's  Menial  Servant  in 
their  Custody,  that  part  of  the  Mob  which  stay'd  at  the  out- 
ward Gate  crying  out  to  the  party  at  my  Door  not  to  give  up 
any  of  their  Prisoners  to  me.  Upon  this  I  immediately  went 
out  to  'em  and  demanded  the  cause  of  the  Tumult,  to  which 
one  of  'em  arm'd  with  a  Cutlass  answer'd  me  in  an  Insolent 
manner  it  was  caus'd  by  my  unjustifiable  Impress  Warrant; 
whereupon  I  told  'em  that  the  Impress  was  not  made  by  my 
Warrant,  nor  with  my  knowledge ;  but  that  he  was  a  very 
Impudent  Rascal  for  his  behaviour ;  and  upon  his  still  grow- 
ing more  Insolent,  my  Son  In  Law  ^  who  happen'd  to  follow  me 
out,  struck  his  Hat  off  his  head,  asking  him  if  he  knew,  who 
he  was  talking  to ;  this  immediately  silenced  their  Clamour, 
when  I  demanded  of  'em,  where  the  King's  Officers  were, 
that  they  had  selz'd  ;  and  they  being  shewn  to  me,  I  went  up 
to  the  Lieutenant  and  bid  him  go  into  my  House,  and  upon 
his  telling  me  the  Mob  would  not  suffer  him,  I  took  him  from 
among  'em,  and  putting  him  before  me  caus'd  him  to  go  in, 
as  I  did  likewise  the  other  three  and  follow'd  'em  without 

*  William  Bollan,  Shirley's  son-in-law,  was  joint  agent  with 
Christopher  Kilby  and  aided  Shirley  in  obtaining  the  grant  from 
Parliament  in  recompense  for  the  expenses  of  Massachusetts  in 
the  Louisbourg  expedition. 

413 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Exchanging  more  words  with  the  Mob,  that  I  might  avoid 
making  any  Promises  or  Terms  with  'em ;  But  my  Son  in 
Law,  with  the  Speaker  of  the  Assembly,  the  Colonel  of  the 
Regiment,  and  Captain  of  the  Massachusetts  Frigate,  who 
were  now  come  into  the  House,  stood  some  time  at  the  Door 
parlying  and  endeavouring  to  Pacify  'em  'till  upon  the  Tu- 
mult's increasing,  and  their  threatning  to  recover  the  Sea 
Officers  by  force,  if  I  did  not  deliver  'em  up  again,  or  the 
Lieutenant  did  not  come  out  to  'em  and  swear  that  he  was 
not  concern'd  in  the  Impress,  I  sent  an  Under  Sheriff,  then 
lately  come  into  my  House,  to  desire  the  Gentlemen  to  let 
'em  know  that  I  should  consent  to  neither ;  and  to  retire  into 
the  House ;  and  arm'd  the  Officers,  who  were  now  seven  or 
eight  in  number,  to  stand  upon  their  Defence,  in  case  the 
Mob  should  be  so  outrageous,  as  to  attempt  to  break  into  the 
House,  and  had  the  Door  shut  against  'em ;  upon  which  the 
Mob  beset  the  House  round,  made  some  feint  appearances 
of  Attempting  to  force  the  Door  open,  abus'd  the  Under- 
sheriff  in  my  Court  yard  (whom  they  beat  and  at  last  put  in 
the  Publick  Stocks)  and  after  behaving  in  a  Tumultuous 
manner  before  the  House  about  half  an  hour,  left  it. 

By  noon  all  the  Officers  of  Mr  Knowles's  Squadron  of  any 
Rank,  who  were  on  Shoar,  except  Captn  Erskine  of  the 
Canterbury  (who  had  retir'd  out  of  Town,  where  he  was  the 
day  after,  confin'd  by  a  Mob)  had  retir'd  to  my  House ; 
and  several  Officers  of  my  own,  and  the  two  Canada  Regi- 
ments came  there  to  offer  their  Service  for  the  protection  of 
it ;  and  about  four  in  the  afternoon  I  went  to  the  Council 
Chamber-  the  General  Assembly  being  then  sitting,  to  pro- 
pose the  immediate  issuing  of  a  Proclamation  for  dispersing 
the  Mob,  and  discovering  and  apprehending  the  Ring- 
leaders and  others  concern'd  in  it,  and  the  same  being  just 
passed  by  the  Board  and  the  reward  to  be  given  being  then 
under  Consideration,  the  Mob  now  increas'd  and  join'd  by 
some  Inhabitants  came  to  the  Town  House  (just  after  candle 
light)  arm'd  as  in  the  morning,  assaulted  the  Council  Cham- 
ber (myself  and  the  Council  being  then  sitting  there  and  the 
House  of  Representatives  a  minute  or  two  before  by  accident 

414 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

adjourn'd)  by  throwing  Stones  and  Brickbatts  in  at  the 
Windows,  and  having  broke  all  the  Windows  of  the  lower 
floor,  where  a  few  of  the  Militia  Officers  were  assembled, 
forcibly  enter'd  into  it,  and  oblig'd  most  of  the  Officers  to 
retire  up  into  the  Council  Chamber ;  where  the  Mob  was  ex- 
pected soon  to  follow  'em  up ;  but  prevented  by  some  few 
of  the  Officers  below,  who  behav'd  better. 

In  this  Confusion  two  popular  Members  of  the  Council 
endeavour'd,  but  in  vain,  to  appease  the  Mob  by  speaking 
to  'em  from  the  Balcony  of  the  Council  Chamber;  after 
which  the  Speaker  of  the  House  and  others  of  the  Assembly 
press'd  me  much  to  speak  two  or  three  words  to  'em,  only 
promising  to  use  my  endeavours  with  Mr  Knowles  to  get  the 
Impress'd  Inhabitants  and  some  of  the  outward  bound  Sea- 
men discharg'd ;  which,  against  my  Inclinations,  and  to 
prevent  their  charging  any  bad  Consequences,  which  might 
happen  from  this  Tumult  upon  my  refusal,  I  yielded  to ; 
and  in  this  Parley  one  of  the  Mob,  an  Inhabitant  of  the  Town 
call'd  upon  me  to  deliver  up  the  Lieutenant  of  the  Lark, 
which  I  refus'd  to  do ;  after  which  among  other  things  he 
demanded  of  me,  why  a  Boy,  one  Warren  now  under  Sen- 
tence of  death  in  Goal  for  being  concern'd  in  a  Press  Gang, 
which  kill'd  two  Sailors  in  this  Town  in  the  Act  of  Impress- 
ing, was  not  Executed ;  and  I  acquaint'd  'em  his  Execution 
was  suspended  by  his  Majesty's  order  'till  his  pleasure  shall 
be  known  upon  it ;  whereupon  the  same  Person,  who  was 
the  Mob's  Spokesman  ask'd  me  "if  I  did  not  remember 
Porteous's  Case  who  was  hang'd  upon  a  sign  post  in  Edin- 
burgh." I  told  'em  very  well,  and  that  I  hop'd  they  remem- 
ber'd  what  the  Consequence  of  that  proceeding  was  to  the 
Inhabitants  of  the  City ;  after  which  I  thought  it  high  time 
to  make  an  end  of  parleying  with  the  Mob,  and  retir'd  into 
the  Council  Chamber :  The  Issue  of  this  was  that  the  Mob 
said  they  would  call  again  at  the  Council  Chamber  the  next 
day  to  know  whether  the  Impressed  men  were  Discharg'd ; 
and  went  off  to  a  Dock  Yard  upon  proposal  made  among 
'em  to  burn  a  Twenty  gun  ship  now  building  there  for  his 
Majesty;  whereupon  I  went  to  my  own  House  accompanied 

415 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

with  a  party  of  Officers,  Sir  William  Pepperrell,  and  the 
Gentlemen  of  the  Council ;  within  a  quarter  of  an  Hour 
after  which  the  Mob,  who  had  been  diverted  from  their  pur- 
pose against  the  King's  Ship  by  the  sudden  coming  to  shoar 
of  a  Barge,  which  they  took  to  belong  to  one  of  Mr  Knowles's 
Squadron,  seiz'd  andcarry'd  it  in  Procession  through  the  Town 
with  an  Intention  to  burn  it  in  my  Court  Yard ;  upon  which 
I  order'd  a  party  of  Officers  to  go  out  and  oppose  their  En- 
trance at  my  Outward  Gate,  which  about  ten  of  'em  immedi- 
ately did,  and  upon  the  Appearance  of  the  Mob's  preparing 
to  force  that  Gate  open,  Cock'd  and  presented  their  Musketts 
at  'em  through  an  open  Palisade  fence,  and  had  fir'd  upon 
'em,  if  Sir  William  Pepperrell  had  not  instantly  call'd  out  to 
the  Officers  to  hold,  'till  such,  who  might  only  be  Spectators 
could  be  warn'd  to  seperate  from  among  the  Mob ;  which 
they  perceiving,  and  that  the  Windows  of  the  House  were 
likewise  lin'd  with  arm'd  Officers,  desisted  and  immediately 
alter'd  their  Scheme  to  that  of  burning  the  Barge  in  an  out 
part  of  the  Common,  not  discovering,  'till  after  it  was  burnt, 
that  it  really  belong'd  to  a  Master  of  a  Scotch  Vessell  one  of 
their  Ringleaders.  The  Mob  then  separated  and  distrib- 
uted themselves  at  the  different  Wharves  and  Ferry  places, 
and  at  the  Town  Gates  and  other  parts,  to  prevent  any  of 
the  Sea  Officers  escaping  out  of  the  Town  either  by  Water 
or  Land  in  the  Night;  but  at  twelve  o'clock  I  furnished 
Captain  Derby  and  Captain  Tailer  and  the  Lieutt.  of  the 
Lark,  with  Horses  out  of  my  own  Stable,  and  sent  my  Coach- 
man with  'em  for  their  guide,  who  conducted  'em  along  the 
beach  clear  of  the  Town  Gates  and  Mob,  about  six  miles 
out  of  Town,  to  a  place  where  I  order'd  the  Castle  Barge  to 
be  sent  for  'em  the  next  morning,  and  so  they  got  safe  on 
board  Mr  Knowles. 

The  day  following  Mr  Knowles  upon  hearing  of  these  out- 
rages wrote  me  word,  that  he  purpos'd  to  bring  his  whole 
Squadron  before  the  Town  the  next  morning,  but  I  dissuaded 
him  from  it,  by  an  immediate  Answer  to  his  Letter :  In  the 
Evening  the  Mob  forcibly  search'd  the  Navy  Hospital  upon 
the  Town  Common  in  order  to  let  out  what  Seamen  they 

416 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

could  find  there  belonging  to  the  King's  Ships ;  and  seven 
or  eight  Private  Houses  for  Officers,  and  took  four  or  five 
petty  Officers ;  but  soon  releas'd  'em  without  any  ill  Usage, 
as  they  did  the  same  day  Captain  Erskine,  whom  they  had 
suffer'd  to  remain  in  a  Gentleman's  House  upon  his  Parole, 
their  chief  intent  appearing  to  be,  from  the  beginning,  not 
to  use  the  Officers  ill  any  otherwise  than  by  detaining  'em, 
in  hopes  of  Obliging  Mr  Knowles  to  give  up  the  Impress'd 
men. 

Your  Lordships  will  doubtless  by  this  time  think  the 
Militia  of  the  Town  very  tardy  in  not  appearing  yet  under 
Arms,  pursuant  to  my  Orders  for  suppressing  this  outragious 
Tumult;  I  thought  'em  inexcusable  and  express'd  my  re- 
sentment at  it  by  ordering  three  of  the  next  County  Regi- 
ments, and  part  of  the  Regiment  of  Horse  to  be  forthwith 
rais'd,  in  Order  to  proceed  to  Boston,  and  in  the  mean  time 
retiring  out  of  the  Town,  'till  I  could  assemble  that  force  to 
quell  the  Insurrection ;  whereupon  the  Town  has  done 
everything  in  their  power  since,  to  express  their  Abhorrence 
of  these  proceedings,  and  atone  for  their  Neglect ;  and  though 
I  think  nothing  can  be  said  sufficient  to  excuse  'em,  yet  sev- 
eral things,  may  in  extenuation  of  their  faultiness ;  as  the 
suddenness  of  the  Tumult,  their  not  rightly  understanding 
the  Notice  given  'em  by  their  Officers  of  my  Orders,  the  mis- 
taken notion  that  the  Impress  was  made  on  shoar ;  in  which 
Persons  had  been  hal'd  out  of  their  beds  and  others  wounded  ; 
which  prov'd  intirely  false ;  that  three  hundred  men  were 
Impress'd,  whereas  no  more  than  forty  eight  were ;  that 
many  of  the  Inhabitants  were  taken  among  'em ;  whereas 
only  three  Carpenter's  Apprentices  were,  and  those  by  Ac- 
cident ;  the  recent  memory  of  two  men's  having  been  kill'd 
by  a  press  Gang  on  Shoar ;  the  sufferings  of  some  Merchants 
and  Traders  by  Mr  Knowles's  Impress,  who  were  Owners  of 
outward  bound  Vessells  ready  to  sail ;  their  Uneasiness  at 
the  dliference  made  between  the  Sugar  Colony  Islands  and 
his  Majesty's  Colonies  upon  the  Northern  Continent  by  the 
late  Act  of  Parliament  exempting  the  former  from  Impresses 
of  Seamen  within  their  Limits,  and  the  perswasion  they  have 
VOL.  I  —  2E  417 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

all  over  the  Continent,  that  the  Impressing  of  Seamen  within 
any  of  his  Majesty's  Plantations,  is  illegal,  by  virtue  of  a 
Clause  in  a  Statute  of  the  [  ^]  of  Queen  Anne,  which  they 
conceive  to  be  perpetual,  notwithstanding  the  Opinions  of 
Sir  Edward  Northey,  Sir  Dudley  Ryder  and  the  late  Solicitor 
General  Strange,  publish'd  here  to  the  contrary ;  and  which 
nothing  will  remove,  but  a  Judicial  Determination,  or  an 
Act,  or  Clause  in  an  Act  of  Parliament  declaring  the  Clause 
in  the  former  Act  to  be  expir'd. 

But  what  I  think  may  be  esteem'd  the  principal  cause  of 
the  Mobbish  turn  in  this  Town,  is  it's  Constitution  ;  by  which 
the  Management  of  it  is  devolv'd  upon  the  populace  as- 
sembled in  their  Town  Meetings ;  one  of  which  may  be 
called  together  at  any  time  upon  the  Petition  of  ten  of  the 
meanest  Inhabitants,  who  by  their  Constant  attendance 
there  generally  are  the  majority  and  outvote  the  Gentlemen, 
Merchants,  Substantial  Traders  and  all  the  better  part  of  the 
Inhabitants ;  to  whom  it  is  Irksome  to  attend  at  such  meet- 
ings, except  upon  very  extraordinary  occasions ;  and  by 
this  means  it  happens,  as  it  would  do  among  any  other  Com- 
munity in  a  Trading  Seaport  Town  under  the  same  Consti- 
tution, where  there  are  about  Twenty  thousand  Inhabitants, 
consisting  among  others  of  so  many  working  Artificers,  Sea- 
faring Men,  and  low  sort  of  people,  that  a  factious  and  Mob- 
bish Spirit  is  Cherish'd  ;  whereas  the  same  Inhabitants  under 
a  different  Town-Constitution  proper  for  the  Government  of 
so  populous  and  Trading  a  place,  would  probably  form  as 
well  dispos'd  a  Community  for  every  part  of  his  Majesty's 
Service,  as  any  the  King  has  under  his  Government. 

Your  Lordships  will  perceive  by  this  Account  that  Mr 
Knowles  gave  no  just  occasion  for  such  a  Tumult;  he  had 
lost  near  fifty  men  by  Desertion  since  his  Squadron  lay  in 
this  Harbour,  as  he  inform'd  me,  and  that  his  Ships  were 
short  of  their  Complement ;  and  I  must  add,  that  Captains 
of  his  Majesty's  Ships  have  usually  Impress'd  out  of  Ves- 
sells  on  float  in  this  Harbour,  and  am  perswaded  Mr  Knowles 
did  not  design  to  Impress  any  Inhabitants,  twenty  of  whom 

^The  statute  is  not  cited  by  Shirley. 
418 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

he  had,  as  he  inform'd  me,  a  little  before  DIscharg'd ;  as  I 
believe  he  wo'd  have  done  most  of  the  outward  bound  Sailors, 
if  these  outrages  upon  his  Officers  had  not  happen'd. 

The  whole  Province  Is  very  angry  at  the  Tardiness  of  the 
Mllltia  of  the  Town  of  Boston,  and  the  House  of  Represen- 
tatives was  remarkably  so. 

I  am,  with  the  Highest  respect 
Your  Lordshlps's 

most  humble  and  most 

Obedient  Servant        r-rr  o 

W.  Shirley. 

Rt.  Honble  Lords  of  Trade. 

Endorsed: 

Massachusetts-Bay. 
Letter  from  Mr  Shirley,  Govr  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts-Bay, to  the  Board,  dated  at  Boston, 
the  1st  of  December  1747.  Containing  an 
acct.  of  a  Riot  which  lately  happened  there, 
on  acct.  of  Admiral  Knowles  having  impressed 
some  men  out  of  the  Trading  Ships  in  the 
Harbour  of  Boston. 


Reed  May  the  9th 
Read loth 


1748 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY    TO    GIDEON    WANTON » 

Boston,  December  28,  1747. 
Sir, 

I  sometime  ago  informed  Your  Honour  of  a  meeting  of 
commissioners,  to  be  appointed  from  the  governments  from 
Virginia  as  far  as  New  Hampshire,  being  proposed  to  be  at 
New  York ;  and  am  now  to  apprise  you,  that  in  consequence 
of  that  proposal,  there  has  been  a  meeting  of  commissioners 
from  this  government.  New  York  and  Connecticut,  at  New 
York ;  and  that  they  agreed  on  another  meeting,  now  fixed 
to  be  at  Middletown,  in  Connecticut,  the  20th  of  next  month. 

iR.  LCol.  Rec.  5,  235. 
419 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Those  commissioners  have  reported,  that  there  be  a  rep- 
resentation made  to  His  Majesty,  as  to  those  governments 
which  refuse  to  assist  in  this  common  cause ;  thinking,  I 
suppose,  that  there  is  a  necessity  for  it,  when  there  is  such 
danger  of  losing  the  Six  Nations,  and  the  other  numerous 
tribes  of  Indians,  their  allies,  to  the  westward ;  for  the  pres- 
ervation of  whose  friendship,  the  King  has  always  been  very 
solicitous  ;  as  also  for  the  safety  of  his  province  of  New  York, 
and  in  his  instructions  to  the  present  Governor,  has,  as  I  am 
informed,  directed  that  the  other  governments  should  give 
their  assistance  in  it. 

I  hope  your  government  will  look  on  my  apprising  Your 
Honor  of  this,  to  proceed,  as  it  really  does,  from  a  most 
friendly  disposition  to  them,  and  my  hearty  zeal  to  promote 
the  interest  of  the  common  cause ;  and  that  they  will  send 
one  or  more  commissioners  to  meet  and  act  with  the  others, 
upon  this  important  affair. 

I  hear  all  the  people  at  Pennsylvania,  are  willing  to  assist 
in  preventing  the  western  Indians  going  over  to  the  French. 

I  am.  Sir, 

Your  Honor's  most  Obedient  and  humble  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
To  the  Hon.  Governor  Wanton. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE  OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

Boston,  December  31,  1747. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

The  Council  and  House  of  Representatives  having  com- 
municated to  me  their  Address  to  his  Majesty,  praying  to  be 
relieved  against  the  impressing  of  Seamen  within  the  Prov- 
ince for  the  manning  of  his  Majesty's  Ships  of  War,  and 
desiring  that  I  would  represent  their  Case  to  his  Majesty ; 
I  shall  endeavour  for  that  purpose  to  lay  it  before  your  Grace 
in  the  justest  light  I  can. 

1  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  s,  901,  p.  236. 
420 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

The  Governour  with  the  Advice  of  the  Council  in  this 
Province  (and  in  no  other  Colony,  as  I  have  been  inform'd, 
on  this  Continent)  us'd  for  many  years  past,  'till  about 
eighteen  Months  ago,  upon  the  representation  of  the  Cap- 
tains of  his  Majesty's  Ships  of  War  to  the  Governour  that 
their  Ships  Companies  were  short  of  their  Complement,  and 
their  desire  that  the  Governour  would  furnish  'em  with  men 
to  make  it  up,  to  Issue  an  Impress  Warrant  directed  to  the 
Sheriff  or  Sheriffs  of  the  County  or  Counties  where  the  Sea- 
port Towns  lay,  out  of  which  the  Governor  thought  proper 
to  raise  the  men,  to  impress  such  a  number  of  Seamen  for  his 
Majesty's  Service,  as  the  Council  advis'd  him  to — Inhabitants 
of  the  Province,  Fishermen,  Mariners  belonging  to  Coasting 
and  outward  bound  Vessels  being  always  excepted  out  of  the 
Warrant.  And  this  Practice  was  for  several  years  thought, 
as  I  believe  it  really  prov'd,  a  considerable  Protection  to  the 
Inhabitants  and  Mariners  above  excepted  against  being 
impress'd,  and  generally  supply'd  the  King's  Ships  with  a 
sufficient  Number  of  Seamen,  if  not  their  full  Complement. 

But  since  the  commencement  of  the  War  with  France, 
it  has  been  found  to  drive  away  the  other  Seamen  out  of 
the  Province  into  the  neighbouring  Colonies  of  New  York 
and  Rhode  Island  (but  chiefly  the  latter)  where  they  were 
shelter'd  from  Impresses,  and  ship'd  themselves  on  board 
the  Privateers  and  trading  Vessels  sailing  out  of  those  Har- 
bours ;  by  which  means  the  Trade  and  Navigation  of  this 
Province,  especially  of  the  Town  of  Boston,  was  laid  under 
great  Difficulties,  not  only  for  want  of  Sailors  to  mann  their 
Ships,  but  through  the  extravagant  Wages  that  were  exacted 
from  the  Merchants  and  Traders  by  means  of  the  scarcity  of 
Seamen ;  and  what  added  to  that  was  that  whilst  the  Gov- 
ernment by  their  Impresses  on  Shoar  drove  the  foreign  Sea- 
men there  out  of  the  Province,  the  King's  Ships  in  the 
Harbour  impress'd  out  of  all  inward  bound  Vessels,  whereby 
the  Province  was  draln'd  of  Mariners  both  ways  :  This  Gov- 
ernment however  went  on  to  issue  out  Impress  Warrants 
when  his  Majesty's  Service  requir'd  it,  'till  about  two  years 
ago,  the  Officer  to  whom  an  Impress  Warrant  for  manning  the 

421 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Wager  was  directed  (in  my  absence  at  Louisbourg)  permitted 
the  Purser  and  a  midship-man  with  the  Boatswain  and  others 
of  the  Ship's  Company  to  assist  him  in  the  Execution  of  it, 
whereby  two  Seamen  really  not  liable  to  be  impress'd,  were 
kiird  in  such  a  manner,  as  that  the  Judges  were  clearly  of 
Opinion  it  was  an  aggravated  Murther,  for  which  the  Boat- 
swain and  a  Boy  which  were  taken  (the  two  Officers,  who 
from  what  I  have  heard,  or  at  least  the  Purser,  were  most 
guilty  of  the  Murther,  making  their  Escape)  were  con- 
demned ;  since  which  unhappy  Affair,  Attempts  to  impress 
on  Shoar  are  so  odious  to  the  People,  that  they  have  raised 
a  Tumult,  and  his  Majesty's  Council  seem  determined  not 
to  advise  any  more  Impress  Warrants  to  be  issued ;  so  that 
now  the  King's  Ships  coming  into  this  Harbour,  unless 
restrain'd  from  it  by  proper  Orders,  will  in  all  probability 
carry  oiT  the  Mariners  not  only  out  of  the  inward  but  out- 
ward bound  Vessels,  without  any  Distinction  of  foreign  Sea- 
men, Inhabitants  or  Coasters ;  especially  as  they  may  come 
very  short  of  their  Complement  from  the  West  Indies  since 
the  late  Act  of  Parliament  for  prohibiting  the  impressing  of 
Seamen  there ;  whereby  this  Province  may  be  hurt  beyond 
measure  through  continual  Impresses  almost  to  the  utter  ruin 
of  their  Trade  and  Navigation.  And  I  must  here  observe  to 
your  Grace,  that  impressing  out  of  the  Coasting  Vessels 
trading  to  this  Town,  which  receives  great  part  of  it's  Sup- 
plies of  Provisions,  and  almost  all  it's  Fuel  by  these  Vessels, 
is  in  a  particular  manner  mischievous  to  the  Inhabitants  by 
cutting  'em  off  from  these  Supplies  whilst  any  of  the  King's 
Ships  of  War  lie  here,  and  in  the  Winter  Season  might  en- 
danger the  starving  of  the  poorer  Sort ;  and  I  would  observe, 
that  even  when  the  Coasters  were  generally  exempted  from 
being  impress'd,  yet  the  Appearance  of  a  Man  of  War  in  the 
Harbour  ever  deterr'd  'em  from  venturing  to  come  into  it, 
'till  the  Commanders  of  the  King's  Ships  have  given  a  pub- 
lick  Assurance  under  their  hands  that  their  Officers  should 
not  impress  out  of  Coasting  Vessels,  and  this  Town  in  the 
mean  time  has  often  suffer'd. 

Having  thus  laid  before  your  Grace  the  State  of  this  Prov- 

422 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ince  with  respect  to  Impresses  of  Seamen  made  here  for  man- 
ning his  Majesty's  Ships  of  War,  and  the  DifHculties  which 
it's  Trade  and  Navigation  suffers  on  that  account,  and  is  in 
danger  of  farther  suffering,  unless  reliev'd  by  proper  Orders 
and  Regulations  for  that  purpose ;  I  shall  not  presume  to 
say  what  I  think  would  be  the  proper  Orders  ;  But  only  take 
the  Liberty  to  observe  to  your  Grace  that  so  long  as  Seamen 
shall  continue  to  be  impress'd  here  for  his  Majesty's  Service, 
it  seems  to  me,  that  no  Regulations  of  those  Impresses  can 
effectually  relieve  this  Province,  unless  some  method  is  at 
the  same  time  found  to  oblige  the  other  Colonies,  especially 
the  neighbouring  ones  of  Rhode  Island,  New  York  and  Pen- 
silvania  to  furnish  their  proportion  of  Mariners  for  the 
King's  Ships  either  by  cruizing  before  their  Harbours,  or 
some  other  proper  Method. 

I  am  with  the  most  dutiful  Regard, 
My  Lord  Duke, 
Your  Grace's  most  Devoted 
and  most  Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 


Endorsed: 


Boston  31st  Deer.  1747 
Governr  Shirley 
^  8th  Apl 

Sent  to  the  Lords  of  the 
Admiralty. 

15  April  1748. 


423 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY,   JR.,   TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ' 

My  Lord  Duke, 

In  Obedience  to  your  Grace's  Orders  I  beg  leave  to  Inform 
you  that  my  Father  intreats  your  Grace's  Favour  in  recom- 
mending my  Brother  to  his  Majesty  for  Leave  to  serve  as  a 
Voluntier  in  Flanders  in  the  ensuing  Campaign. 

My  Brother  has  a  Company  in  the  Regiment  under  my 
Father's  Command,  and  was  sent  hither  by  him  in  the  Month 
of  November  last  Express  with  Dispatches  on  the  Service 
of  the  Government ;  As  he  is  too  young  to  expect  at  present 
any  higher  Rank  in  the  Army  than  what  he  now  enjoys, 
the  only  End  of  his  making  this  Request  to  your  Grace  is 
that  he  may  have  an  opportunity  of  instructing  himself  in 
his  Duty  and  of  qualifying  himself  in  the  best  manner  for 
the  Discharge  of  the  Commission  he  is  honour'd  with  :  As  the 
Garrison  at  Louisbourg  is  well  supply'd  with  Officers  on 
the  Spot,  my  Father  apprehends  that  his  Majesty's  Service 
there  will  not  suffer  by  my  Brothers  Absence  from  the  Regi- 
ment. 

I  am  with  the  highest  Respect, 
My  Lord  Duke, 
Your  Grace's  most  Obedient 
and  Devoted  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Suffolk  Street,  Jany.  14,  1747. 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed: 

Suffolk  Street. 
Janry.  14.  1747/8. 
Mr.  Shirley. 

^  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32714,  54.  A  transcript  is  in  the 
Library  of  Congress.  See  Shirley  to  Newcastle,  Aug.  31,  1747, 
ante,  p.  397.  It  was  John  Shirley  for  whom  the  military  expeiience 
was  sought. 

424 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

GEORGE  CLINTON  TO  WILLIAM   SHIRLEY 

[Extract  ^] 

Feb.  17,  1747/8. 
Sir, 

I  have  now  Your  Excellency's  favour  of  the  13th  instant 
touching  the  State  of  the  Indians,  which  I  take  much  to 
heart,  and  shall  do  every  thing  in  my  power  to  preserve  their 
fidelity  in  the  British  interest,  of  which  I  have  the  strongest 
assurances  from  Col.  Johnson  (now  with  me)  that  they  are 
well  inclined  provided  they  are  supported,  and  notwithstand- 
ing so  great  an  expence  has  incurr'd  at  the  suit  of  the  Crown, 
to  engage  them  heartily  in  the  war  upon  the  occasion  of  the 
Expedition ;  yet  I  am  determined  to  promote  His  Majesty's 
service  with  them,  as  far  as  lies  in  my  power,  rather  than  let 
them  revolt  to  the  French,  who  are  extreamly  industrious 
by  their  emissaries  to  withdraw  them  from  their  dependence  ; 
nevertheless  I  hope  and  expect  this  Province  will  contribute 
largely  thereto,  in  ease  of  the  Crown,  when  it  is  consider'd 
what  beneficial  consequences  must  accrue  to  all  the  Colonies, 
and  particular  to  this,  by  their  being  stedfast  in  our  interest. 

The  Assembly  of  this  Province  are  now  mett,  and  I  hope 
with  such  tempers  as  will  excite  them  to  promote  the  com- 
mon cause ;  and  as  I  have  the  greatest  inclination  to  bring 
the  Agreement  into  execution,  I  have  strongly  recommended 
that  matter  to  them,  with  their  concurrence  to  your  Altera- 
tions, in  my  speech,  which  I  have  inclosed ;  and  I  heartily 
wish  the  design  may  be  carryed  on  with  success. 

I  can  put  no  confidence  in  any  succour  by  sea,  not  knowing 
how  the  Fleet  in  the  West  Indies  may  be  otherwise  disposed, 
however  willing  Your  Excelly.   and  myself  may  be  to  join 

^  Docts.  rel.  to  Col.  Hist,  of  N.  Y.  6,  426.  George  Clinton 
served  as  Governor  of  New  York  from  1741  to  1753.  The  son  of 
Francis,  Earl  of  Lincoln,  he  had  influence  at  London  and  had 
served  in  the  British  navy  before  entering  upon  his  term  as  Gov- 
ernor. He  returned  to  England  with  the  rank  of  Admiral  and  died 
in  1 761.  Governor  Clinton  is  said  to  have  made  about  1^400,000 
during  the  twelve  years  of  his  governorship. 

42s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

our   application  to  Mr  Knowles  to  furnish  what  ships  he 
can  for  this  service. 

In  case  the  enterprize  goes  on  and  success  is  the  event,  I 
am  confident  that  no  difficulty  will  arise  in  maintaining  the 
Fort  for  His  Majesty's  service,  and  should  our  Assembly 
haggle  about  the  Alterations,  I  dont  see  the  least  reason  why 
the  service  should  be  retarded  on  that  account  as  your  Com- 
missioners observe  your  Excelly.  won't  scruple  maintaining 
that  Fort  at  the  expence  of  the  Crown,  and  I  do  assure  your 
Excelly.  you  may  depend  upon  me  that  I  will  forward  all  that 
can  be  expected  from  this  Province,  for  such  apparent  bene- 
fits as  must  ensue  to  all  the  Colonies  from  the  reduction  of 
Crown  Point,  and  if  they  agree  to  your  alterations,  your 
Excelly.  and  Mr  Law  shall  have  the  earliest  advice  thereof 
in  order  for  a  meeting  of  the  Commissioners. 

George  Clinton. 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   GEORGE    CLINTON  ^ 

Sir, 

I  am  favoured  with  Your  Excelly's  Letter  of  the  17th 
Febry  by  the  Returns  of  Burbien  and  upon  consideration  of 
that  part  of  the  inclos'd  Extract  of  the  Duke  of  Newcastle's 
Letter,  which  concerns  the  preserving  the  Friendship  of  the 
Six  Nations  and  keeping  'em  inseparably  attached  to  His 
Majesty's  Interest,  which  His  Majesty  has  been  pleased  to 
lay  his  commands  upon  me,  to  join  with  your  Excelly  in 
taking  care  of  all  his  Northern  Colonies ;  the  present  con- 
juncture of  Affairs  with  respect  to  these  Nations  seems  to  me 
so  critical  and  the  danger  of  their  being  gain'd  over  to  the 
French,  without  the  most  speedy  and  prudent  measures 
taken  to  prevent  it,  so  great,  that  I  think  it  my  duty  to  send 
this  by  Express,  to  acquaint  Your  Excelly  that  I  am  ready  to 
join  with  you  in  whatsoever  shall  appear  to  be  necessary  or 
conducive  to  the  execution  of  His  Majesty's  Commands  and 
as  not  only  a  meeting  between  us  may  be  needfull  for  our  con- 

^  Docts.  rel.  to  Col.  Hist,  of  N.  Y.  6,  421. 

426 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

certing  proper  measures  in  this  Affair,  but  likewise  an  In- 
terview with  the  Indians,  I  shall  be  glad  of  both  if  Your 
Excelly  approves  of  it,  at  such  time  and  place  as  may  be  most 
suitable  and  convenient  for  such  a  Congress. 

As  your  Excelly  has  had  a  long  Experience  of  those  Tribes, 
(the  management  of  which  has  been  committed  to  you  by 
His  Majesty)  I  must  rely  much  on  your  judgement  in  this 
matter;  However  I  would  in  the  mean  time  suggest  that 
what  may  appear  to  be  of  immediate  necessity  to  be  done  in 
order  to  secure  and  strengthen  their  Friendship  or  employ 
them  against  the  Enemy,  (and  especially  the  Protection  and 
Defence  of  their  old  men,  women  and  children  while  their 
Young  Men  are  fighting)  ought  not  to  be  delayed. 

I  hope  Your  Excelly's  Speech  will  influence  Your  Assembly 
to  agree  to  the  Alterations  made  by  the  Assembly  of  this 
Province  in  the  Commissioners  Report,  for  otherwise  not- 
withstanding you  should  join  with  me  in  maintaining  a  Gar- 
rison at  Crown  Point  (in  case  the  Colonies  should  refuse  to 
do  it)  at  His  Majesty's  Expence,  yet  it  may  obstruct  the 
service  very  much  by  hindering  the  Assembly  here  from 
joining  in  the  Expedition,  which  in  my  Apprehension  is  of 
the  utmost  consequence  to  be  undertaken  forthwith  for  secur- 
ing the  Indians  in  his  Majesty's  Interest. 


W.  Shirley. 


March  2d,  1747/8. 


WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO    GEORGE    CLINTON » 

Sir, 

I  am  favoured  with  Your  Excelly's  Packet  by  the  Post.  I 
agree  in  general  with  Your  Excellency  in  every  part  of  Your 
Letter  of  the  29th  Febry  and  I  hope  the  three  Governments  at 
least  concern'd  in  the  late  Congress  will  agree  upon  an  Ex- 
pedition against  Crown  Point  at  all  events,  and  that  we  shall 
succeed  in  it  which  makes  the  consideration  of  building  a 
strong  Fort  at   the  carrying  place    unnecessary  at  present. 

*  Docts.  rel.  to  Col.  Hist,  of  N.  Y.  6,  421. 

427 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

I  think  it  very  proper  to  press  upon  the  Governments  of 
New  Jersey  and  Pensilvania  to  contribute  their  proportion  of 
Men  and  Money  towards  the  Enterprize  against  Crown  Point 
and  will  join  with  Your  Excelly  in  doing  it  as  soon  as  it  is  cer- 
tainly agreed  by  the  three  principal  Governments  in  this 
Affair,  that  an  Enterprize  shall  be  carry'd  on  before  which 
I  am  afrayd  it  would  be  done  to  a  disadvantage ;  But  I 
cannot  see  then  how  they  can  decently  stand  out,  when  His 
Majesty's  declared  pleasure  in  the  case  shall  be  urged  upon 
'em ;  and  I  think  New  York  may  on  that  account  be  the 
most  convenient  place  for  a  congress  of  the  Commissioners 
from  all  the  Governments  propos'd  to  be  compris'd  in  the 
agreement,  and  shall  accordingly  recommend  it  as  such  to  the 
Assembly ;  And  should  the  other  Governments  not  accede 
to  the  Agreement  between  New  York,  the  Massachusetts  and 
Connecticut,  I  am  of  Opinion  to  proceed  upon  the  Enter- 
prize without  'em,  as  those  three  Colonies  have  doubless 
sufficient  strength  to  carry  it  on  effectually. 

I  am  entirely  of  opinion  that  the  Forts  should  be  finished 
for  the  protection  of  the  Indians  as  proposed  by  Your  Excelly 
and  that  the  engaging  Col.  Johnson  to  go  among  the  six  nations 
with  an  Interpreter,  to  prevent  their  going  to  Canada  in  the 
Spring  and  to  prepare  them  for  their  joining  us  in  the  Enter- 
prize against  Crown  Point,  and  his  making  'em  the  presents 
propos'd  by  Your  Excelly  and  compleating  the  Forts  begun 
are  measures  extreamly  well  concerted  and  indeed  necessary 
for  retaining  the  Indians  in  His  Majesty's  Interest,  and  I  am 
of  opinion  that  'till  the  Enterprize  against  Crown  Point  is 
ripe  for  Execution,  the  Indians  with  a  suitable  number  of 
Christians  joined  with  'em  should  be  kept  constantly  em- 
ploy'd  in  Acts  of  Hostility  against  the  Enemy,  for  which  the 
Indians  should  have  a  proper  allowance  by  way  of  pay  or 
present,  or  in  some  other  method,  of  which  Your  Excelly  is 
the  best  Judge. 

W.  Shirley. 

March  22d,  1747/8. 


438 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY'S    CONFERENCE   WITH    THE 

INDIANS ' 

Propositions  made  by  His  Excellency 
Governour  Shirley,  Captain  General  and  Gov- 
ernour  in  Chief  of  the  Province  of  the  Mas- 
sachusetts Bay,  and  Vice- Admiral  of  the  same, 
to  the  Six  Nations  of  Indians,  vizt  the  Mo- 
hawks, Oneydays,  Tuskaroras  Onondagas, 
Cayougas,  and  Senekes,  as  also  to  their  Allies 
vizt  Oghquuges,  Toalaghreghroonees  and 
Scanehaderadeyghronees  at  Fort  Frederick 
in  Albany  the  23d  day  of  July  1748. 

Present  —  His  Excellency  The  Honble  George  Clinton 
His  Excellency  William  Shirley  Esqr 


The  Honble  Cadwr  Colden 
Phillip  Livingston 
Archibald  Kenedy 
James  Delancy 


Esqrs  of  His  Maj- 
esties Council  for 
the  Province  of 
New  York. 


Andrew  Oliver  1  Esqrs  Commissioners  for 

Thomas  Hutchinson  \  the      Province     of     the 
John  Choate  j  Massachusetts  Bay. 

Colo  William  Johnson. 
Several  Gentlemen  from  Boston  and  New 
York,    the  Officers  of  the    Independent 
Companies   and  the  Gentlemen    of  the 
Town. 
Brethren, 

I  am  glad  to  have  this  Opportunity  of  saluting  You  and 
Your  Allies  here  in  the  King  Your  Father's  Name,  and  inquir- 
ing after  Your  health  and  welfare.  (Gave  a  string  of  Wam- 
pum.) 

'  A  copy  of  this  interview  signed  by  Shirley  is  inclosed  in  Shirley 
and  Clinton  to  the  Lords  of  Trade,  Aug.  18,  1748,  post,  p.  441. 
See  also  Docts.  rel.  to  Col.  Hist,  of  N.  Y.  6,  447. 

429 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Several  Months  ago  I  let  the  King  Your  Father  know  how 
just  you  have  been  to  Your  Engagements  with  his  Excellency 
Governour  Clinton,  under  whose  immediate  care  he  has  plac'd 
you,  and  faithfuU  to  Your  Brethren  of  the  English  Colonies, 
by  taking  part  with  them  in  the  Warr  against  the  French 
and  those  Indians  whom  they  have  seduced  into  their  Interest, 
to  make  'em  Instruments  of  their  Cruelty  and  perfidiousness 
to  us  and  you  ;  Thereupon  the  King  Your  Father  has  sent  his 
Royal  Commands  to  me  to  join  with  Governour  Clinton  in 
doing  whatever  may  be  necessary  for  Your  Defence  and  Pro- 
tection against  the  common  enemy,  and  in  giving  You  proofs 
of  his  paternal  Care  and  Tenderness  for  You,  whom  he  looks 
upon  and  will  ever  treat  as  part  of  his  Children  upon  this 
Continent ;  And  I  have  chosen  this  opportunity,  when  His 
Majesty's  presents  are  to  be  delivered  to  you,  as  the  most 
convenient  for  meeting  you  here,  that  I  may  in  Conjunc- 
tion with  His  Excellency  the  Governour  of  New  York,  give 
You  Assurances  of  this  in  the  King  Your  Father's  name,  and 
Act  in  concert  with  him  for  securing  Your  welfare 

(Gave  a  small  Belt.) 

Brethren, 

I  am  further  to  acquaint  you  that  notwithstanding  I  now 
visit  and  speak  to  you  in  consequence  of  Instructions  which  I 
have  receiv'd  from  the  King  Your  Father,  yet  the  Province 
of  the  Massachusetts  Bay,  which  the  King  has  put  under  my 
Government,  being  willing  to  take  every  opportunity  of 
cultivating  that  friendship  which  has  subsisted  between  them 
and  you  from  the  beginning  has  Appointed  three  Gentlemen 
to  accompany  me  and  attend  on  their  behalf  at  this  Inter- 
view ;  And  I  now  assure  you  on  the  part  of  the  Province,  as 
does  the  Appearance  of  these  Gentlemen,  that  it  is  sincerely 
desirous  that  the  Covenant  Chain  may  be  constantly  kept 
bright  and  strengthned  between  them  and  You,  and  that  the 
Path  between  the  Massachusetts  Bay  and  Your  Country  may 
be  kept  clear  and  open,  so  that  there  may  be  a  constant  and 
free  Intercourse  between  us,  and  that  we  may  frequently 
Inquire  after  and  mutually  promote  each  other's  welfare. 

43° 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Brethren, 

It  was  with  great  Concern  that  I  heard  of  the  severe 
Imprisonment  of  our  Brethren  of  the  Six  Nations,  who  are 
now  Captives  in  Canada  :  Before  I  had  been  informed  of 
this,  upon  receiving  intelligence  that  an  Indian  belonging 
to  the  Goverment  of  Rhode  Island,  who  was  taken  prisoner 
had  been  sold  in  Canada  for  a  slave,  I  wrote  to  the  late 
French  Governor  there  complaining  of  it  and  demanding  of 
him  to  set  him  free  and  treat  him  with  the  same  rights  of 
War,  that  the  King's  subjects  are  entitl'd  to ;  to  which  the 
present  Governour  of  Canada  has  return'd  me  for  answer  that 
he  had  inquired  after  that  Indian  but  could  hear  nothing  of 
him  :  This  was  by  no  means  a  satisfactory  answer  to  me,  and 
as  I  have  now  brought  with  me  from  my  own  Governmt  four- 
teen French  Prisoners  to  be  sent  forward  to  Canada  for  the 
Redemption  of  our  Brethren  of  the  Six  Nations,  lest  those 
which  have  been  sent  before  by  Governour  Clinton  for  that 
purpose  should  not  be  sufficient  to  procure  their  Release, 
His  Excellency  and  I  are  determined  to  write  a  joint  Letter 
to  the  French  Governour  demanding  the  Ransom  of  these 
Prisoners,  and  to  let  him  know  we  expect  our  Brethren  of  the 
Six  nations  and  their  allies  should  in  all  points  be  treated  by 
the  French,  when  made  their  Prisoners,  as  the  English  Sub- 
jects are.  (Gave  a  Great  Belt.) 

Brethren, 

I  must  not  omit  observing  to  you  that  I  esteem  the  Readi- 
ness and  Alacrity  of  such  of  You  as  went  out  three  days  ago 
with  a  sincere  and  hearty  disposition  in  quest  of  the  Enemy, 
who  according  to  their  usual  barbarity  most  inhumanly 
mangled  the  dead  Bodies  of  Your  slain  Brethren,  whom 
they  had  surprized  with  unequal  numbers  at  Schenectady  as 
additional  proof  of  Your  Affection  and  Fidelity  to  us  and  of 
Your  Zeal  for  the  King  Your  Father's  service. 

(Gave  a  Small  Belt.) 
Brethren, 

I  must  conjure  you  to  keep  the  Ax  which  Governour 
Clinton  has  delivered  to  You,  and  to  hold  Your  selves  in  con- 

431 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

stant  Readiness  to  join  with  Your  Brethren  in  making  use  of 
it  when  You  shall  be  called  upon  to  revenge  the  Murthers 
which  you  see  daily  committed  by  the  Enemy  upon  us  and  You 
in  our  own  lands,  instances  of  which  You  lately  had  in  the 
Persons  of  Your  Brother  Kingego  and  his  two  Companions ; 
Cruelties  most  unnatural  in  the  French  Indians  who  abus'd 
them,  as  they  had  been  once  Your  natural  Brothers ;  But 
whoever  acts  by  the  instigation  of  the  French,  our  and  Your 
inveterate  Enemies  must  divest  themselves  of  all  truth  and 
Humanity  to  please  their  cruel  perfidious  Masters. 

I  must  likewise  conjure  You  that  you  would  not  Suffer 
any  of  Your  people  to  be  drawn  away  upon  any  Pretence 
whatever  in  Canada,  by  the  deceitfuU  Invitations  of  the 
French,  whose  sole  view  in  doing  it  is  to  gain  Opportunities 
of  breaking  that  strong  Covenant  Chain,  which  has  from  the 
beginning  link'd  our  forefathers  together,  who  by  Experi- 
ence found  that  their  and  our  safety  depended  upon  keeping 
it  unbroken  and  firm ;  also  that  you  would  not  permit  any 
French  to  reside  among  You  in  Your  Castles,  but  that  you 
would  consider  them  as  Enemies,  who  come  among  you  to 
spy  out  Your  weakness,  and  destroy  you  by  instilling  into  you 
groundless  Jealousies  of  Your  brethren,  and  thereby  betraying 
You  to  Your  Enemies  in  Canada,  who  will  make  use  of  a 
thousand  different  Artifices  to  divide  you  from  them ;  well 
knowing  there  is  no  other  way  of  ruining  you  than  that ;  and 
I  must  put  You  upon  Your  guard  against  permitting  Your 
Warriors  to  go  out  from  among  you  to  fight  with  the  Flat 
heads  as  they  live  in  Friendship  with  Your  Brethren  the 
English.  (Gave  a  Belt.) 

Brethren, 

Whilst  You  strictly  observe  the  Orders  which  Governour 
Clinton  has  given  you  and  keep  Your  selves  closely  united  to 
Your  Brethren,  and  depend  upon  the  King  Your  Father  for  his 
Protection  of  You  and  Your  Families  in  the  Enjoyment  of 
Your  Lands  and  Possessions,  You  will  be  in  no  danger  of  being 
drove  out  of  Your  Country  and  having  Your  Nations  Extir- 
pated ;   but  may  rest  secure  of  being  treated  with  the  same 

432 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Paternal  Regard  by  the  King  Your  Father,  as  his  EngHsh 
Subjects  are :  But  if  you  suffer  Yourselves  to  be  deluded  by 
the  Fair  Promises  of  Your  old  Enemies  the  French ;  They, 
when  they  have  once  got  you  into  their  power,  by  breaking 
the  Covenant  Chain  between  You  and  Your  Brethren  the 
English,  and  drawing  You  from  under  the  King  Your  Father's 
Protection  will  soon  find  out  means  to  root  out  Your  Tribes, 
and  share  Your  Lands  among  them,  which  I  conjure  you  by 
this  Belt  of  Wampum  to  guard  Yourselves  against. 

(Gave  a  Great  Belt.) 

William  Shirley  to  the  River  Indians, 

Speech  made  by  His  Excellency  William 
Shirley  Esqr  Captain  General  &  Governour 
in  Chief  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  in  New 
England  and  Vice-Admiral  of  the  same,  to  the 
River  Indians  at  Fort  Frederick  in  Albany 
the  27th  day  of  July,  1748. 

Present  —  as  before. 

Children, 

I  take  this  opportunity  of  joining  with  His  Excellency, 
Governour  Clinton  in  thanking  You  for  Your  fidelity  to  the 
English,  and  of  assuring  You  that  upon  Your  continuance  of 
Your  Dutifullness  and  Obedience  to  the  King  Your  Father 
You  will  share  His  affection  which  he  now  gives  You  a  token 
of  in  the  Presents  he  has  directed  to  be  made  You. 

(Gave  a  Belt.) 
W.  Shirley. 
The  Six  Nations  to  William  Shirley, 

Answer  from  the  Sachems  of  the  Six 
Nations  to  His  Excellency  William  Shirley 
Esqr.  Captain  General  and  Governour  in 
Chief  of  the  Province  of  the  Massachusetts 
Bay  in  New  England,  and  Vice  Admiral  of 
the  Same.  At  Fort  Frederick  in  Albany 
26th  July  1748. 

VOL.  I  —  2  p  433 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Present  —  His  Excellency  The  Honble  George  Clinton  Esqr 
His  Excellency  William  Shirley  Esqr 
The  Honble  Cadwalr 
Colden 
Ph.  Livingston 
Archd  Kenedy 
James  Delancey 
Colo  Wm  Johnson 


Esqrs  of  His  Majesties 
Council  for  the  Prov- 
ince of  New  York. 


Esqrs  Commissioners  for 

•     the    Province    of    the 

Massachusetts  Bay. 

Several  Gentlemen  from  Boston  and  New  York. 

Several  Officers  of  the  Independent  Companies 

and  New  Levies. 


Andrew  Oliver 
Tho.  Hutchinson 
John  Choate 


Brother  Yehowanne, 

We  thank  Your  Excellency  for  condoling  our  losses  and  that 
you  wash  off  our  tears  from  our  eyes,  wipe  up  the  Blood  of 
the  Slain/  and  clear  our  minds  that  we  may  speak  freely  and 
cheerfully  together  at  this  place ;  We  do  the  same  in  like 
manner  on  our  parts  to  you. 

(Gave  a  string  of  Wampum.) 

We  thank  Your  Excellency  for  the  regard  you  have  had  for 
us  to  come  so  speedy  to  this  Conference,  left  Your  Vessell  to 
come  by  land  through  many  Perils  and  Dangers  ;  We  are  very 
glad  to  see  You  here,  with  the  Commissioners  from  the  Mas- 
sachusetts Bay,  who  accompany  you  here. 

(Gave  a  string  of  Wampum.) 

We  also  return  Your  Excellency  thanks  for  acquainting 
the  King  Our  Father  that  some  of  us  have  made  use  of  the 
Hatchet  against  his  Enemy  the  French  and  of  our  Readiness  in 
joining  You  in  this  Warr ;  We  are  very  glad  that  His  Majesty 
is  pleased^  with  our  behaviour,  and  that  it  was  his  orders.  You 
should  join  (as  you  tell  us)  with  Govr  Clinton  in  doing  what 
was  necessary  for  own  Defence  ^  and  Protection  and  in  giving 

^Or  our  slain,  according  to  another  manuscript. 
2  Or  was  much  pleased.     Ibid. 
^  Or  our  defense.     Ibid.  • 
434 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

us  Assurances  of  his  care  and  tenderness  for  us  and  that  you 
are  now  come  to  this  Interview  that  you  may  in  Conjunc- 
tion with  Govr  Clinton  give  us  such  assurances. 

(Gave  a  Belt  ^  of  Wampum.) 

Brother  Yehowanne, 

You  acquainted  us  that  before  You  left  Boston  three 
gentlemen  were  appointed  to  accompany  you  to  this  Inter- 
view, who  we  see  here  present.  We  are  very  thankfuU  you 
have  brought  them  along  to  assist  you,  it  might  be  necessary 
in  case  any  weighty  affairs  were  to  be  transacted ;  We  do 
for  our  parts  renew  and  confirm  the  ancient  Covenant  Chain 
which  has  linked  us  and  our  forefathers  together ;  We  heartily 
join  therein  hand  in  hand  untill  death  part  us  and  Desire  you 
to  do  it  in  like  manner ;  We  thank  you  that  the  path  from 
Boston  to  our  Country  shall  at  all  times  be  kept  open  and  clear, 
that  we  may  have  free  intercourse  together,  &  often  hear 
from  each  other,  and  we  do  in  like  manner  promise  on  our 
parts  that  the  Road  from  our  Castles  to  Boston  shall  be  open 
that  we  may  acquaint  each  other  with  what  may  happen, 
and  assist  on  any  occasion  that  may  require.     (Gave  a  Belt.) 

Brother  Yehovv^anne, 

We  are  pleased  at  what  you  tell  us  concerning  your  com- 
plaining to  the  Governour  of  Canada,  of  the  selling  of  an 
Indian  Captive  there  belonging  to  the  Government  of  Rhode 
Island,  and  demanding  of  them^  to  set  him  free,  and  return  you 
thanks  that  you  are  mindfull  to  redeem  our  people,  who  are 
in  Gaol  at  Canada,  by  Your  sending  a  number  of  French 
prisoners  here,  to  release  them,  if  the  number  Govr  Clinton 
has  sent  be  not  sufficient  and  that  you  would  write  jointly  with 
our  Governor  to  the  Governor  of  Canada  in  a  most  pressing 
manner  for  'em,  that  if  any  other  of  our  people  be  taken  Pris- 
oners for  the  future,  they  might  be  us'd  and  redeem'd  as  Your 
own  people,  which  is  very  pleasing  and  acceptable  to  us. 

(Gave  a  Belt.) 

^  Or  a  String.     Ibid. 
*  Or  him.     Ibid. 
43S 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Brother  Yehowanne, 

The  Cruel  Murther  Committed  by  the  Enemy  on  the 
Inhabitants  at  Schenectady  just  before  Your  arrival  affects 
us  very  much,  and  we  are  much  oblig'd  to  you  for  your  kind 
Approbation  of  our  Readiness  to  pursue  the  enemy ;  we 
have  done  our  Endeavours  but  they  were  gone  a  different 
way  home  from  what  we  ^  generally  us'd  to  do,  so  that  we 
coul'd  not  overtake  them ;  We  promise  to  be  always  ready 
on  the  like  occasion.  (Gave  a  Belt.) 

Brother  Yehowanne, 

It's  true  we  have  the  War  hatchet  from  Govr  Clinton  in 
our  hands ;  you  desire  us  to  be  always  ready  to  make  use  of 
it  which  we  promise  to  do  upon  his  Commands  ;  we  are  fully 
determin'd  and  resolv'd  as  you  have  heard  in  our  answer  to 
Govr  Clinton  not  to  hearken  to  the  French,  nor  go  to  Canada, 
that  we  may  not  be  deluded  and  deceiv'd  by  them  which  we  do 
assure  you  for  the  second  time  we  shall  persist  in ;  We  do 
acknowledge  to  be  true,  as  you  are  pleas'd  to  say,  that  the 
French  are  deceitful  and  artful  to  delude  us,  for  they  have 
always  drawn  off  part  of  our  Nations  to  live  among  'em  in 
Canada ;  who  it's  Hkely  lately  murther'd  Kingego  one  of 
our  Brethren  of  the  Mohawks  and  we  faithfully  promise  and 
engage  that  none  of  our  people  shall  on  any  Pretence  or  In- 
vitation of  the  French  go  for  the  future  to  Canada,  Accord- 
ing to  your  request,  we  shall  not  suffer  Jan  Coeur  or  any 
French  to  come  and  reside  among  us,  as  you  have  heard  we 
just  now  promis'd  to  our  Governour;  And  we  all  the  Six 
Nations  pawn  our  Honour  that  we  shall  fulfill  our  Engage- 
ments made  to  our  [Brother]  Corlaer  and  You  ;  and  our  Young 
Men  shall  stay  at  home,  and  not  go  out  to  fight  any  more 
against  the  Flat  heads  while  they  be  friends  to  our  Brethren 
the  English.  (Gave  a  Belt.) 

Brother  Yehowanne, 

We  are  very  thankful  for  Your  good  advice  not  to  hearken 
to  the  French  to  be  deluded  by  them  from  our  Duty  and 

1  Or  they.    Ibid. 
436 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Allegiance  to  His  Majesty,  for  we  are  sensible  if  we  do  we 
shall  be  undone,  and  then  they  will  be  able  to  destroy  us  and 
divide  our  lands  ;  wherefore  we  are  fully  determin'd  to  keep 
firmly  to  Our  Engagements  made  to  our  Brethren  the  Eng- 
lish, and  not  hearken  to  their  Delusions  ;  we  faithfully  promise 
not  to  regard  nor  take  any  notice  of  them,  and  we  shall  en- 
deavour on  our  parts  to  keep  this  Engagement ;  and  as  you 
have  more  skill  and  knowledge  we  desire  and  hope  you  will 
give  Your  assistance  and  advice  to  keep  all  our  people 
unanimous  and  of  one  Mind.  (Gave  a  Belt.) 

Brother  Corlaer  Waraghjago  and  Yehov^^anne 
We  have  now  done  with  what  we  had  to  say. 

W.  Shirley.* 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   MARQUIS   LA 
GALISSONIERE « 

Albany  July  29th,  1748. 
Sir, 

1  am  to  acknowledge  the  Honour  of  Your  Letter  which  Sergt 
Hawke  deliver'd  me  at  his  Return  from  Canada.  Governour 
Clinton's  and  my  sending  the  present  Flag  of  Truce  to  you 
is  occasion'd  by  the  Complaints  of  the  Indians  of  the  Six 
Nations  (who  have  been  under  his  Majesty's  protection  ever 
since  the  first  settlement  of  the  English  in  North  America, 
and  consider'd  as  Vassalls  of  the  Crown  of  Great  Britain)  that 
some  of  their  Captives  in  Canada  are  kept  in  Irons,  where- 
upon not  knowing  what  number  of  French  Prisoners  Govr. 
Clinton  might  have  collected  in  the  Government  of  New 
York,  to  send  in  Exchange  for  'em  I  brought  wth  me  fourteen 

^The  conference  was  followed  by  an  Indian  dance  and  a  general 
drinking  to  the  health  of  King  George.i  Docts.  rel.  to  Col.  Hist,  of 
N.Y.  6,  452. 

2  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  886.  See  also  Docts.  rel.  to  Col.  Hist,  of  N.  Y. 
6,  452,  and  i  Penn.  Arch.  2,  26.  The  French  governor's  reply  of 
Aug.  25  was  sent  in  part  by  Shirley  to  the  Duke  of  Bedford  and 
is  in  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  45,  p.  132. 

437 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Prisoners  belonging  to  Old  France,  from  my  own  Governmt 
to  send  for  the  Redemption  of  those  Indians,  and  we  now  send 
'em  to  Montreal  by  the  way  of  Oswego. 

Mr  Clinton  informs  me,  Sir,  he  has  so  fully  wrote  to  you 
upon  the  Right  which  the  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations,  who  are 
expressly  acknowledg'd  in  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht  to  be  under 
His  Majesty's  Protection,  have  to  be  treated  as  his  Subjects 
in  their  Captivity,  that  I  would  not  farther  trouble  you  upon 
that  point,  but  I  begg  leave  to  referr  you  to  his  letter,  and  per- 
swade  myself,  Sir,  from  the  humanity  and  politeness,  which 
visibly  appear  in  the  letter  with  which  you  honoured  me,  that 
if  those  Indians  were  coniin'd  in  Irons  as  has  been  Repre- 
sented to  us  you  have  upon  receiving  that  letter  ordered  'em 
to  be  released  from  'em  and  that  I  need  add  nothing  here 
upon  that  head. 

As  to  insisting  upon  the  Indians  of  the  Six  Nations  coming 
in  person  to  Canada  to  treat  with  his  most  Christian  Maj- 
esty's Governour  there  for  the  Redemption  of  their  Breth- 
ren, who  are  made  Captives,  as  has  been  represented  to  Mr 
Clinton  and  me  has  been  done  ;  I  can't  but  think,  Sir,  you  will 
be  of  opinion  that  as  those  Indians  are  the  King  our  Masters 
Vassalls,  engag'd  in  his  warr,  it  belongs  to  him  to  treat  for 
their  release  and  that  it  is  contrary  to  the  Custom  of  Nations 
for  one  Prince  to  require  the  Subjects  and  Vassalls  of  another 
Prince  to  come  into  his  Territories  to  treat  for  the  Redemp- 
tion of  their  Brethren  taken  Prisoners  in  Warr,  and  that  such 
an  innovation  is  an  Infraction  of  the  Right  that  every  Prince 
has  over  his  own  Subjects  and  Vassalls ;  and  I  hope.  Sir, 
(for  settling  this  point)  that  you  will  be  pleased  to  manifest 
Your  concurrence  in  Opinion  with  me  by  accepting  the  four- 
teen Prisoners  now  sent  in  Exchange  for  the  Indian  Prisoners 
of  the  Six  Nations  if  Governour  Clinton  has  not  already  sent 
a  sufficient  Number  for  that  purpose  from  New  York. 

I  have  mention'd  to  Mr  Clinton  what  you  observ'd  upon 
the  French  prisoners  belonging  to  Canada  not  being  sent 
there  in  Consequence  of  my  proposal  to  the  Marquis  De 
Beauharnois,  in  behalf  of  his  Majesty's  other  Governors  in 
the  Neighbourhood  of  New  England,  and  he  assures  me  he 

438 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

has  sent  all  he  could  hear  of  In  his  Government,  except  some 
that  were  sent  to  the  French  Colonies  in  the  West  Indies 
before  he  had  received  my  letter.  As  to  those  which  fall  into 
the  hands  of  our  Indians  he  has  us'd  his  Endeavours  to  pro- 
cure 'em,  and  actually  sent  four  to  Canada  by  his  Flag  of 
Truce ;  and  will  send  the  others  as  soon  as  he  has  it  in  his 
power  to  obtain  'em,  which  he  apprehends  the  Report  of  the 
usage  of  the  Indian  Prisoners  in  Canada  has  very  much  con- 
tributed to  hinder  him  from  having. 

A  Report  founded  upon  Advices  from  England  prevails 
here  that  Preliminaries  for  a  General  Pacification  are  sign'd 
at  Aix  la  Chapelle  by  the  Kings  our  Masters  and  the  States 
General,  and  that  in  consequence  thereof  a  Cessation  of  Arms 
has  been  published  at  London  and  Paris  at  the  Head  Quarters 
of  both  Armies  in  Flanders  :  This  tho'  not  confirmed  by 
Instructions  from  his  Majesty,  which  Mr  Clinton  and  I  are 
in  daily  Expectation  of  receiving,  seems  so  well  grounded  that 
in  order  to  put  an  End  to  the  Bloodshed  and  Ravages  of  Warr, 
as  soon  as  possible,  which  we  think  it  a  Duty  incumbent 
upon  us  to  do ;  we  have  determin'd  to  withhold  our  English 
and  Indian  parties  from  committing  Hostilities  against  the 
French,  untill  the  return  of  our  Flag  of  Truce,  with  Your 
answer ;  and  we  flatter  ourselves,  Sir,  that  you  will  be  of  the 
same  sentiments  with  Regard  to  the  French  and  Indians 
under  Your  Government. 

I  have  inquired  into  the  reality  of  the  base  Attempt  re- 
ported to  you  to  have  been  formed  by  some  English  of  the 
Government  of  New  York,  to  induce  the  Indians  in  the 
French  interest  treacherously  to  murder  the  Garrison  at 
Crown  point,  but  don't  find  any  just  grounds  for  the  Report, 
and  can't  but  hope  from  the  unprecedentedness  of  so  wild  a 
Scheme  among  the  English,  that  the  Representation  made 
of  such  an  one  to  you,  is  either  an  absolute  mistake  or  Fals- 
hood. 

I  have  wrote  to  the  several  Neighbouring  English  Gov- 
ernours,  desiring  them  to  signiiie  their  consent  to  the  Pro- 
posals made  by  me  on  their  behalf,  and  agreed  between  Your- 
self and  me  on  the  part  of  the  Province  under  my  Government 

439 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

and  Canada,  for  a  mutual  Discharge  of  Prisoners  on  both 
sides,  and  to  send  me  their  Quotas  of  Expence  incurr'd  by  You 
on  account  of  Your  Flag  of  Truce  sent  by  sea  to  Boston,  with 
English  Prisoners  belonging  to  the  several  American  Gov- 
ernments, and  some  to  England ;  but  have  only  receiv'd  an- 
swers in  general,  that  they  will  ratify  those  Proposals  and  pay 
their  Quotas  of  the  charge  already  arisen,  but  no  farther  yet 
from  'em  as  I  have  no  doubt  but  I  shall  soon,  and  be  able  to 
adjust  the  ballance  with  you.  In  this  case.  Sir,  you  will  be 
pleased  to  make  a  just  Allowance  for  the  Difference  between 
several  English  Governours  who  have  Assemblies  to  consult 
in  all  money  Matters  and  other  Material  points  of  Govern- 
ment, and  Yourself  who  have  the  sole  determination  and  Exe- 
cution of  these  matters,  so  far  as  relates  to  the  Country  under 
Your  Command,  which  necessarily  retards  the  proceedings  of 
the  former ;  However  I  may  say  in  the  mean  time  that  I 
believe  the  charges  incurr'd  by  my  own  Government  on 
account  of  the  Flag  of  Truce  I  sent  you  by  sea  to  Quebeck, 
with  prisoners  belonging  to  Canada,  exceed  what  is  due  from 
it  for  its  Quota  of  the  whole  Expence  rising  on  the  part  of 
the  English. 

It  gives  me  a  sensible  pleasure  to  find  that  the  civilities 
which  I  shew'd  the  Sieur  Rambault  were  agreeable  to  you. 

I  must  ask  Your  Excuse  for  anything  which  I  may  have 
omitted  to  answer  of  Your  letter  which  I  have  not  at  present 
before  me,  but  through  my  Hurry  in  leaving  Boston  to  come 
to  this  place,  casually  left  behind  me  ;  and  hope  you  will  per- 
mitt  me  to  assure  you  that  I  am  with  perfect  consideration, 
Sir,  &c. 

P.S.  I  have  no  Canadeans  Prisoners  in  my  Government 
now,  and  I  hope  if  you  have  any  belonging  to  the  Province  of 
the  Massachusetts  Bay  at  Canada,  that  you  will  send  'em 
by  the  Messengers  which  shall  deliver  this  to  you. 

(Copy  signed)  W.  Shirley. 

To 

The  Marquis  La  Gallissoniere,  Governour  General  of  all 
New  France,  and  the  Louisiana  &c,  at  Quebec. 

440 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM    SHIRLEY   TO   GEORGE    CLINTON  * 

New  York,  August  13th,  1748. 
Sir, 

I  am  honoured  with  your  Excellency's  letter  of  the  5th 
instant  in  which  you  inform  me,  "That  you  are  of  opinion 
the  present  state  of  His  Majesty's  government  within  this 
Province  requires  the  immediate  attention  of  the  Ministry" 
and  are  pleased  to  desire  me  "as  His  Majesty's  service  has 
brought  me  here,  whereby  I  have  an  opportunity  of  fully 
informing  myself  of  this  matter  from  the  Publick  papers,  and 
other  information  which  your  Excellency  has  directed  Mr 
Colden  to  lay  before  me  to  consider  the  same  and  to  represent 
it  to  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  as  you  believe  I  shall  find  things 
in  such  a  state  that  I  shall  think  it  my  duty  to  give  my  senti- 
ments thereon."  Upon  which  I  am  to  acquaint  your  Ex- 
cellency that  according  to  your  desire  I  have  informed 
myself  of  the  state  of  His  Majestys  government  within  this 
Colony  and  find  that  several  late  innovations  have  been  in- 
troduced by  the  Assembly  into  it,  and  incroachments  made 
upon  His  Majesty's  prerogative  greatly  tending  to  weaken 
his  government,  not  only  in  the  Colony  of  New  York  but  in 
His  Majesty's  other  Colonies  in  North  America,  through  the 
influence  which  so  bad  an  example  (in  this  Colony  especially) 
may  have  among  them  ;  and  I  now  send  your  Excellency  a 
particular  state  of  the  innovations  and  incroachments  which 
appear  to  me  most  materially  to  effect  His  Majesty's  govern- 
ment, with  my  sentiments  of  what  may  be  the  most  advise- 
able  measures  for  putting  an  end  to  them,  as  may  either 
serve  for  your  Excellency's  private  consideration  only,  or  be 
of  use  to  you  in  making  a  representation  of  them,  as  you 
shall  think  fit  to  the  Duke  of  Bedford ;  which  I  think  will 
come  more  properly  from  your  Excellency  than  from  me. 

^  Docts.  rel.  to  Col.  Hist,  of  N.  Y.  6, 432.  This  letter  is  printed  in 
full  to  show  the  clearness  with  which  Shirley  warned  against  the 
growth  of  the  power  of  the  Assembly  at  the  expense  of  the  gov- 
ernor. 

441 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

And  as  I  found  it  necessary  in  order  to  trace  the  beginning 
and  growth  of  the  several  incroachments  that  have  been 
made  on  the  King's  prerogative,  as  also  to  judge  what  might 
be  the  most  proper  steps  for  putting  a  stop  to  them,  to  look 
back  into  the  state  of  the  government  under  the  Administra- 
tions of  your  Predecessors  and  compare  it  with  the  present 
state  of  it  under  your  own,  I  have  used  the  same  method  in 
drawing  the  following  account  of  them,  vizt. 

It  appears  by  the  Acts  of  Assembly  that  at  the  entrance  of 
Governours  Hunter,  Burnet,  Montgomery,  and  Cosby,  for 
about  twenty  eight  years  past,  upon  their  respective  Adminis- 
trations the  Establishments  for  the  support  of  His  Majesty's 
Government  were  made  for  the  term  of  five  years,  and  no  ap- 
lication  of  any  part  of  the  money  arising  from  the  supplies 
granted  to  His  Majesty  for  that  purpose,  except  for  the  pay- 
ment of  the  Treasurer  and  Members  of  the  Assembly,  was 
made  in  these  Acts  :  but  there  was  only  one  general  appro- 
priation in  them,  vizt  For  the  support  of  His  Majesty^ s  govern- 
ment; and  the  money  raised  was  thereby  directed  to  be 
drawn  out  of  the  Treasury  by  warrants  from  the  Governour 
with  the  advice  and  consent  of  His  Majesty's  Council,  which 
it  appears  by  the  minutes  of  Council  was  done,  and  that 
£1560  p  Annum,  being  at  first  and  for  several  years  after- 
wards equal  in  value  to  £1200  sterling  (which  sum  the  Govr 
is  by  His  Majesty's  26th  instruction  directed  to  take  out  of 
his  revenue  within  the  Colony  for  his  support)  was  constantly 
drawn  out  of  the  Treasury  by  him  for  that  purpose,  as  also 
£400  p  annum  New  York  currency  for  fire  wood  and  Candles 
for  his  Majesty's  garrison  there,  and  £200  p  annum  for  the 
repairs  of  the  fortifications ;  and  no  other  grants  or  matters 
whatsoever  were  intermixed  in  the  before  mentioned  Acts, 
except  the  Taxes  and  Supplies  which  constituted  the  Fund, 
out  of  which  the  salaries  and  allowances  to  the  Governour, 
Judges  and  other  Officers  of  the  Government  were  to  be  paid. 

It  appears  also  by  the  minutes  of  Council  that  all  other 
monies  levied  by  Acts  of  Assembly  were  during  that  time 
drawn  out  of  the  Treasury  by  warrant  from  the  Governour 
and  Council. 

442 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

And  I  find  that  during  that  time  all  publick  warlike  stores 
for  the  defence  of  the  Colony  were  lodged  In  the  King's  Maga- 
zine with  the  Store  Keeper  and  issued  by  order  of  the  Gov- 
ernour  In  whose  sole  disposal  they  were. 

And  it  does  not  appear  that  within  this  time  the  Assembly 
assumed  to  themselves  the  appointment  of  such  officers,  as 
it  appertain'd  to  the  Governour  to  appoint,  or  to  nominate 
them  to  him,  or  turn  them  out  of  their  posts  or  to  create  a 
dependency  of  them  upon  themselves  by  an  extraordinary 
manner  of  making  grants  for  their  subsistence. 

But  I  find  that  in  the  year  1743  upon  your  Excellency's 
first  coming  to  the  Administration  the  Assembly  instead  of 
making  the  before  mentioned  Establishment  for  the  support 
of  His  Majesty's  Government  for  the  term  of  five  years, 
pass'd  an  Act  intituled  "An  Act  for  the  payment  of  the 
Salaries,  Services  and  Contingencies  therein  mentioned  untill 
the  1st  of  September  1744  out  of  the  funds  appropriated  for 
the  support  of  the  Government"  and  have  continued  this 
method  of  granting  salaries  for  the  support  of  the  Governour 
and  other  officers  from  year  to  year  only,  ever  since  ;  and  many 
other  innovations  tending  to  create  an  intire  dependency  of 
the  Governour  and  other  Officers  upon  the  Assembly,  and 
to  weaken  His  Majesty's  Government  in  this  Colony,  have 
been  occasionally  introduced  from  year  to  year  by  that  Act. 

As  first,  many  other  grants  are  tack'd  in  it  to  those  made 
to  the  Governour,  among  which  some  have  been  made  to 
persons  under  pretence  of  Extraordinary  Services  done  by 
them,  but  in  reality  (as  I  am  informed  by  Mr  Colden)  for 
composing  and  publishing  libellous  papers  against  your 
Excellency's  Administration,  others  to  an  officer  of  their  own 
appointment  for  keeping  the  gun  powder  provided  for  the 
defence  of  the  Colony,  others  to  their  Agent  In  England 
whom  they  have  in  the  same  Act  obtruded  upon  your  Ex- 
cellency with  directions  for  him  to  take  his  instructions  from 
a  Committee  of  their  own  house,  exclusive  (as  it  appears)  to 
the  Governour  and  Council,  others  to  Committees  appointed 
by  the  Act  for  the  Payment  of  Officers  and  Soldiers  raised  for 
the  defence  of  the  Colony,  the  allowance  of  whose  Muster 

443 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Rolls  as  well  as  their  pay  has  been  likewise  committed  wholly 
to  them  by  the  Act.  Others  to  the  Commissioners  for  Indian 
Affairs  for  payment  of  outscouts  to  be  raised  and  employed 
by  them  solely  at  their  discretion. 

2dly  The  Assembly  have  taken  upon  themselves  contrary 
to  the  express  directions  of  His  Majesty's  commission  to  his 
Governour  by  virtue  of  which  their  House  sits,  which  orders 
"that  all  money  raised  by  Acts  of  Assembly  shall  be  issued 
out  by  warrants  from  the  Governour  with  the  Advice  and 
Consent  of  the  Council,  and  disposed  of  by  the  Governour  for 
the  support  of  the  Government  and  not  otherwise  "  to  limit 
in  the  Act  what  sums  of  money  thereby  raised  shall  be 
drawn  out  of  the  Treasury  by  such  warrants  and  all  other  sums 
of  money  rais'd  by  Act  of  Assembly  ever  since,  except  those 
specially  directed  by  this  Act,  to  be  drawn  out  by  warrant 
from  the  Governor  in  Council,  have  been  issued  out  by  virtue 
of  the  several  Acts  without  such  Warrant. 

3dly.  The  grants  to  the  Governor  for  his  support  and  to 
the  Chief  Justice  for  his  salary,  provided  in  this  Act,  run  thus 
(vizt)  "To  the  Governour  for  administring  the  Government 
of  this  Colony  from  the  22nd  of  September  1743  to  the  first  of 
September  1744  (and  in  like  manner  for  other  years)  after 
the  rate  of  £1560  p  Annum"  (which  sum  I  observe  is  now 
according  to  the  present  exchange,  sunk  from  its  former  value 
of  £1200  sterling,  to  £900)  "and  to  James  DeLancey  Esq. 
as  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  &c  for  the  same  year 
after  the  rate  of  £300  p  Annum";  and  so  to  the  other 
Justices  of  the  Supreme  Court  and  to  several  other  officers  of 
the  Government  by  name,  and  In  case  of  the  death  or  re- 
moval of  any  of  them  within  the  year  It  Is  provided  in  the 
Act  that  no  more  of  their  salaries  shall  be  paid  than  what 
was  due  at  the  time  of  their  respective  deaths  or  removals 
and  that  "the  Remainder  shall  be  kept  In  the  Treasury  'till 
dispos'd  of  by  Acts  to  be  hereafter  pass'd  for  that  purpose." 
So  that  In  case  the  Governour  or  any  of  those  officers  dye  or 
are  superseded  within  the  year,  there  Is  no  provision  for  the 
support  of  the  Lieut  Governour  or  President  of  the  Council 
in  either  of  their  Administrations  during  the  remainder  of  the 

444 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

year,  and  untill  the  appointment  of  a  new  Governour,  nor 
for  the  support  of  the  successor  of  any  other  officer  dying  or 
removed  within  the  year.  And  I  would  observe  besides,  that 
this  new  method  of  making  personal  grants  to  the  Officers 
for  the  time  being,  seems  plainly  to  imply  that  the  Assembly, 
in  case  any  of  the  officers  should  dye  or  be  removed  by  the 
Governour,  will  not  make  provision  for  those  whom  he 
shall  appoint  to  succeed  them  'till  they  know  who  they  are 
and  how  they  approve  of  them. 

4thly.  It  appears  by  the  Minutes  of  the  Assembly's  proceed- 
ings that  the  Acts  thus  made  for  your  Excellency's  annual  sup- 
port are  pass'd  the  last  of  the  Sessions,  and  I  am  informed  by 
Mr  Golden  that  intimations  have  been  given  (as  indeed  the 
Assemblys  delaying  to  compleat  these  Acts  till  the  others 
of  the  same  Session  are  consented  to  by  your  Excellency,  is 
of  its  self)  that  unless  you  pass  the  others  which  are  lay'd 
before  you  for  your  Consent,  the  Act  for  your  support  will 
not  be  passed. 

It  appears  likewise  that  since  the  year  1743  considerable 
advances  have  been  made  by  the  Assembly  towards  usurping 
the  nomination  of  Officers  which  it  appertains  to  the  Govern- 
our to  appoint,  and  the  power  of  turning  such  as  are  actually 
appointed  by  him,  out  of  their  posts,  and  that  they  have  pro- 
ceeded so  far  as  even  to  appoint  an  Officer  to  keep  part  of  the 
King's  warlike  Stores  ;  one  instance  of  which  is,  the  Speaker's 
acquainting  your  Excellency  In  the  name  and  by  order  of  the 
Assembly  and  In  their  presence  In  the  Council  Chamber  before 
the  Council,  that  they  had  turned  out  one  Mr  Heath  com- 
mlssion'd  by  you  to  be  Land  and  Tyde  Waiter  for  the  Colony 
imposts,  and  chose  Mr  Brass  Into  that  post,  whom  they  desired 
you  would  accordingly  commlssionate ;  which  Mr  Golden 
assures  me  was  done  when  he  was  present  at  the  Council 
Board.  Another  instance  is,  their  message  to  your  Excel- 
lency desiring  you  to  appoint  Mr  Mills  Sergeant  at  Arms,  as 
appears  by  the  minutes  of  their  proceedings  :  another  the 
committing  the  custody  of  the  Gunpowder  provided  by  them 
for  the  service  of  the  King's  garrison,  to  a  person  who  had  no 
authority  from  your  Excellency  to  receive  it,  and  for  which  he 

445 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

has  a  grant  made  him  by  Act  of  Assembly  out  of  the  money 
raised  for  the  support  of  His  Majesty's  Government,  and  paid 
to  him  by  the  Treasurer,  by  virtue  of  the  directions  in  that 
act,  without  any  warrant  from  Your  Excellency ;  all  which 
appears  by  the  Act  itself. 

The  Assembly  have  likewise  taken  the  custody  and  disposal 
of  the  gunpowder  provided  for  the  use  of  the  King's  garrison 
and  defence  of  the  Colony,  out  of  your  Excellency's  hands 
into  their  own ;  which  appears  from  their  refusal  to  pass  an 
Act  pursuant  to  the  recommendation  in  His  Majesty's  77th 
instruction,  for  imposing  a  powder  duty  on  every  vessel  that 
enters  and  clears,  for  furnishing  the  magazines  with  powder 
for  the  defence  of  the  Colony  (as  is  the  method  of  most  other 
Colonies,  and  was  used  not  long  since  in  this)  that  they  might 
avoid  having  the  powder  lodged  in  the  magazine  with  the 
Store  Keeper  and  in  the  disposal  of  your  Excellency.  But 
instead  thereof  purchasing  gunpowder  out  of  the  publick 
money  granted  to  His  Majesty  for  the  support  of  his  govern- 
ment, and  which  they  call  by  a  new  distinction  the  Colony^s 
Powder  and  order  to  be  lodged  in  the  Colony's  powder  House 
in  the  custody  of  their  own  officer,  and  not  to  be  issued  by  him 
without  an  Act  of  Assembly  for  that  purpose,  but  to  remain 
there  subject  to  their  own  directions  and  disposal ;  and  such 
quantities  as  are  issued  out  by  acts  of  Assembly  for  the  serv- 
ice of  His  Majesty's  forts  at  New  York  and  Albany,  are 
ordered  to  be  delivered,  not  to  the  Store  keeper  there  to  be 
kept  in  the  King's  magazine,  but  to  particular  persons  nomi- 
nated from  time  to  time  in  those  Acts,  by  the  Assembly. 

And  I  find^likewise  they  have  taken  from  your  Excel- 
lency the  passing  of  the  Muster  Rolls  of  all  the  troops 
raised  for  the  defence  of  the  Colony  (except  the  King's  four 
Independent  Companies)  and  issuing  the  pay  for  them  and 
their  officers,  according  to  the  Establishment  made  for  that 
purpose,  and  committed  it  to  persons  specially  appointed  in 
their  Acts  ;  by  which  they  likewise  take  upon  them  to  draw 
money  out  of  the  Treasury  for  the  pay,  without  warrant  from 
the  Governour. 

And  they  have  likewise  taken  upon  them  not  only  to  give 

446 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  like  power  to  the  Commissioners  for  Indian  Affairs,  with 
regard  to  the  payment  of  outscouts,  but  even  a  power  to 
raise  and  employ  them  at  discretion. 

I  find  also  that  since  1743,  they  have  assumed  the  power 
of  erecting,  by  Acts  of  Assembly,  fortifications  and  ordering 
in  what  manner  they  should  be  raised,  and  committed  the 
execution  of  this  to  the  conduct  and  direction  of  persons 
specially  appointed  for  that  purpose,  in  their  Act. 

And  they  have  still  proceeded  farther  in  your  Excellency's 
absence  at  Albany  and  without  your  consent  or  privity,  to 
take  upon  themselves  in  conjunction  with  the  Council  to 
fortify  part  of  the  City  of  New  York  with  stockades  and 
Blockhouses,  as  your  self  informed  me. 

Upon  all  which  innovations  and  encroachments  I  shall  only 
observe  in  general,  that  the  Assembly  seems  to  have  left 
scarcely  any  part  of  His  Majesty's  prerogative  untouched, 
and  that  they  have  gone  great  lengths  towards  getting  the 
government,  military  as  well  as  civil,  into  their  hands. 

I  have  omitted  to  take  notice  to  your  Excellency  of  the 
stile  of  the  Colony  Acts,  which  runs  thus  :  "Be  it  enacted  by 
His  Excellency  the  Governour,  the  Council  and  the  General 
Assembly  and  it  is  hereby  enacted  by  the  Authority  of  the  same  " 
as  a  designed  incroachment ;  because  I  apprehend  the  latter 
part  of  it  is  not  inserted  in  their  acts  with  a  view  of  claiming 
an  independency  on  His  Majesty  in  the  passing  of  their  laws 
or  excluding  His  Majesty's  royal  authority  to  disallow  them ; 
but  is  a  mere  impropriety  in  them ;  However  as  the  latter 
part  of  the  enacting  clause  is  not  the  proper  stile  of  a  subor- 
dinate government,  and  nothing  should  be  permitted  to  be 
put  into  the  Provincial  Acts  which  may  have  a  tendency  to 
accustom  the  Assemblys  to  consider  their  power  of  passing 
laws,  as  compleat,  without  His  Majesty's  allowance  of  them, 
it  should  be  omitted. 

As  to  what  may  be  the  most  adviseable  measures  for  your 
Excellency  to  take  in  the  present  situation  of  affairs  within 
your  government,  I  think  no  time  should  be  lost  for  letting 
the  Assembly  know  you  expect  that  for  the  future  they  should 
provide  for  the  support  of  His  Majesty's  government  in  the 

447 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

same  manner  which  former  Assemblies  used  to  do  it  in,  ex- 
cept as  to  having  the  sums  proposed  to  be  drawn  out  of  the 
Treasury  for  the  Governours  salary  and  other  Allowances,  and 
for  the  maintenance  of  the  several  officers,  ascertained  in  the 
Act  or  Acts  themselves  (which  I  am  of  opinion  the  Assembly 
have  a  right  to  do)  instead  of  intrusting  it  with  the  Govern- 
our  and  Council,  as  was  the  former  method  ;  also  that  your 
Excellency  should  insist  in  general  to  have  His  Majesty's 
government  within  the  Province  restored  to  its  former  state. 
And  I  think  your  Excellency  will  have  an  advantage  for 
effecting  this  beyond  any  other  person,  as  the  innovations  and 
incroachments  have  arisen  under  your  administration  (what 
was  done  in  Mr  Clark's  time  who  was  only  an  occasional 
Commander  in  Chief  upon  the  death  of  Mr  Cosby  and  till  the 
appointment  of  a  New  Governour,  I  think  can  not  be  re- 
garded in  the  case)  and  therefore  that  it  must  seem  reason- 
able to  the  Assembly  for  you  to  insist  upon  putting  a  stop 
to  them ;  whereas  should  a  Lieut  Governour  or  President  of 
the  Council  attempt  this  in  your  Excellency's  absence  from 
your  government,  I  can  not  think  he  would  have  the  least 
weight  with  the  Assembly  for  altering  what  the  Chief  Gov- 
ernour has  yielded  to;  and  should  not  this  reformation  of 
the  government  be  made  during  your  Excellency's  admin- 
istration, your  successor  will  I  fear  find  that  the  continuance 
of  these  innovations  and  incroachments  during  the  whole  time 
of  that,  will  be  a  considerable  barr  to  his  getting  the  govern- 
ment restored  to  it's  former  state  and  make  the  Assembly 
more  tenacious  of  these  incroachments  than  they  will  prob- 
ably be  now. 

I  shall  only  add  that  as  your  Excellency  must  expect  at 
first  to  meet  with  some  reluctancy  and  opposition  in  the  As- 
sembly to  giving  up  the  points  they  have  gained  I  would 
recommend  it  to  your  consideration  whether  if  you  could 
procure  His  Majesty's  disallowance  of  one  or  more  of  the 
late  Acts  of  Assembly,  by  which  these  innovations  have  been 
introduced,  and  an  additional  instruction  for  restraining  you 
from  giving  your  assent  to  the  like  for  the  future,  to  be  trans- 
mitted you,  it  might  not  strengthen  your  Excellency's  hands 

448 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

and  facilitate  your  resettling  the  King's  government  upon 
it's  former  foot :  I  think  it  would  go  far  towards  it.     Wish- 
ing your  Excellency  all  possible  success  in  this  affair,  I  have 
the  honour  to  be  with  the  most  perfect  regard,  Sir, 
Your  Excellency's  most  Obedient 

and  most  humble  Servt. 

W.  Shirley. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  AND  GEORGE  CLINTON  TO 
THE  LORDS  OF  TRADE ^ 

My  Lords, 

We  beg  leave  to  lay  before  Your  Lordships  an  account  of 
our  Proceedings  upon  our  late  Interview  with  the  Indians 
of  the  Six  Nations  and  their  Allies  at  Albany,^  together  with 
what  we  conceive  proper  to  be  done  for  cultivating  a  Friend- 
ship with  them  and  keeping  them  in  a  Dependence  upon  His 
Majesty. 

When  we  received  His  Majesty's  Commands  by  His  Grace 
the  Duke  of  Newcastle's  letter  of  the  3d  of  October  last  to 
Mr  Shirley,^  directing  us  to  concert  Measures  to  secure  the 
Indians  of  the  Six  Nations  in  His  Majesty's  Interest,  together 
with  the  Presents,  sent  for  them  to  Govr  Clinton,  they  were 
under  great  Uneasiness  and  Jealousy  from  the  Disappoint- 
ments they  had  met  with  since  their  joining  with  us  in  the 
War  against  the  French  of  Canada. 

When  first  they  entered  into  it,  they  had  their  spirits  raised 
to  the  highest  pitch  by  the  preparations  they  saw  making  by 
land  to  invade  Canada,  and  the  assurances  we  had  given 
them  of  a  much  greater  force  of  Regular  troops  and  Ships  of 
War  to  attack  Quebec  by  sea :  They  saw  all  these  hopes 
vanish  and  though  they  made  several  Incursions  with  small 
Parties  into  Canada,  generally  with  success  yet  they  lost 
some  of  their  principal  Men  either  killed  or  taken  Prisoners 
by  the  enemy,  and  while  the  English  continued  to  act  upon 

1  Docts.  rel.  to  Col.  Hist,  of  N.  Y.  6,  437. 
*  July  23,  an/^,  p.  429. 
^  Ante,  p.  401. 

VOL.  I  —  2G  449 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  Defensive,  without  making  any  attempt  upon  the 
Enemy's  Country. 

This  produced  a  jealousy  that  we  are  desirous  to  save 
ourselves  the  trouble  by  exposing  them  to  all  the  Dangers 
and  Calamities  of  War,  at  the  same  time  the  opinion  which 
they  had  entertained  of  the  English  Courage  and  Strength  was 
lessened  almost  to  a  Degree  of  Contempt  by  the  Intrigues  and 
Artifices  of  French  Emissaries  among  them,  and  the  Jeal- 
ousies formerly  infused  into  their  Minds,  that  the  English 
designed  to  have  their  Nations  destroy'd,  in  order  to  possess 
their  lands,  were  revived ;  and  such  Impressions  were  made 
upon  them  that  they  were  ready  to  send  a  solemn  deputa- 
tion to  Canada,  for  which  purpose  their  principal  Sachems 
were  met  together;  and  we  cannot  help  saying  upon  this 
occasion,  that  there  is  even  reason  to  suspect  they  were  en- 
couraged in  this  by  some  of  the  Inhabitants  of  this  Province, 
in  hopes  to  obtain  such  a  kind  of  neutrality  between  this 
Government  and  Canada,  as  subsisted  by  the  Interposition 
of  the  Six  Nations  in  the  time  of  Queen  Ann's  war. 

Under  all  these  Difficulties  Governour  Clinton  by  sending 
Coll.  Johnson  with  other  proper  persons  to  the  meeting  of  their 
Sachems,  and  by  inviting  them  to  meet  him  and  Governour 
Shirley  at  Albany  and  with  hopes  of  very  large  presents  to 
be  given  them,  put  an  entire  stop  to  their  sending  any  Depu- 
tation to  Canada,  and  at  this  meeting,  My  Lords,  a  greater 
number  of  Indians  appear'd  at  Albany  than  any  person  now 
living  had  ever  seen  there. 

We  must  now  observe  to  Your  Lordships  that  though  we 
had  received  no  Orders  or  Instructions  from  his  Majesty  when 
we  were  at  Albany,  Yet  Intelligence  of  the  Preliminaries  for 
a  General  Pacification  being  signed,  and  that  a  Proclamation 
for  a  Cessation  of  arms  was  published,  made  the  Prospect  of 
Peace  become  part  of  the  Common  conversation  at  Albany 
so  that  it  was  not  possible  to  keep  it  Secret  from  the  Indians, 
and  it  greatly  affected  all  of  them  but  more  particularly  the 
Mohawks,  who  had  lost  some  of  their  best  Men  and  were  bent 
upon  Revenge. 

In  this  state  of  Affairs  all  was  obtained  from  them  that 

4SO 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

could  be  proposed  ;  they  promised  either  to  drive  the  French, 
who  privately  resided  among  them,  out  of  their  Country,  or 
to  deliver  them  up  to  Govr  Clinton.  They  also  promised 
to*  send  no  Deputation  to  Canada,  and  that  they  would  keep 
their  Warriors  or  fighting  Men  in  readiness,  when  ever  Govr 
Clinton  should  call  for  them. 

These  things  could  not  be  done  without  a  great  Expence 
in  sending  proper  persons  at  several  times  among  the  several 
nations  before  the  Interview  at  Albany,  in  supporting  the 
Indians  liberally  on  their  Journey  to  and  from  Albany,  as 
well  as  while  they  continued  there,  and  as  their  Crops  of 
Corn  and  their  hunting  had  failed  this  year,  which  they  said 
was  occasion'd  by  their  being  engaged  in  the  War,  it  became 
necessary  to  send  a  supply  of  Corn  to  their  several  castles ; 
and  as  one  artifice  of  the  French  Governour  to  draw  the 
Indians  to  Canada  was  a  promise  that  in  such  case  he 
would  treat  with  them  about  the  Redemption  of  their 
Brethren  then  Captives  there  which  was  a  very  strong 
Inducement  to  them  to  send  some  of  their  Sachems  there 
for  that  purpose,  and  Mr  Shirley  had  brought  with  him  four- 
teen French  Prisoners  from  His  Government  to  Albany  to 
be  sent  from  thence  to  Canada,  in  order  to  redeem  the 
Indian  Captives  which  was  very  acceptable  to  the  Indians, 
in  general :  We  thought  it  advisable  and  it  became  indeed 
necessary  from  the  expectation  of  the  Indians  that  those 
prisoners  should  proceed  to  Montreal  by  the  way  of  Oswego 
to  be  exchanged  for  the  Indian  Prisoners,  in  case  twenty  five 
French  Prisoners  sent  some  time  before  to  Canada  by  Govr. 
Clinton  should  not  be  sufficient  to  redeem  all  the  Indians, 
that  were  captives  in  that  Country. 

But  notwithstanding  all  this  necessary  Expence  in  order 
to  bring  the  Indians  into  a  good  disposition  and  to  convince 
them  of  their  being  safe  under  His  Majesty's  protection  and 
the  Advantages  they  received  from  the  friendship  of  the 
English  beyond  what  they  could  hope  for  from  the  French, 
it  would  not  have  been  sufficient  had  they  not  received  en- 
couragement from  several  nations  of  Indians  who  live  on 
the  borders  of  the  great  lakes,  and  are  at  this  time  much 

451 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

dissatisfied  with  the  French,  who  Offered  to  join  with  the 
Six  Nations  in  case  they  would  make  a  vigorous  attack  on 
Canada,  in  Conjunction  with  the  English  and  here  My  Lords 
we  could  observe  to  Your  Lordships  there  is  at  present  such  a 
prospect  of  promoting  the  English  Interest  and  Trade  among 
numerous  Nations  in  the  Inland  Country,  who  formerly 
were  in  the  French  Interest,  that  we  must  earnestly  Recom- 
mend to  Your  Lordships  the  effecting  of  it,  which  we  think 
may  be  most  properly  done  by  giving  Encouragement  to  one 
or  more  suitable  persons  to  inform  themselves  of  everything 
which  may  be  usefull  (either  by  gaining  or  preserving  the 
Friendship  of  those  Nations)  for  promoting  trade  among  them 
and  for  preventing  their  being  abused  and  cheated  in  their 
Trade. 

Something  of  this  kind  has  been  committed  to  the  care  of 
a  number  of  men  at  Albany,  under  the  name  of  Commis- 
sioners for  Indian  Affairs,  but  as  they  are  all  traders  with  the 
Indians,  they  seem  to  have  at  all  times  had  more  regard  to 
their  private  proffit  than  to  the  publick  good,  and  their  chief 
aim  and  view  seems  to  have  been  to  continue  a  Clandestine 
trade  which  the  principal  Men  among  them  have  in  Canada 
and  which  would  be  most  advantagious  to  them  in  time  of 
War,  as  it  formerly  was  in  Queen  Ann's,  while  Albany  serv'd 
as  a  convenient  place  for  stores  to  the  enemies  parties  that 
made  Incursions  upon  New  England. 

Indeed  the  Traders  with  the  Indians  on  many  accounts  are 
the  least  proper  to  be  intrusted  with  the  conduct  of  publick 
Affairs  among  them  ;  And  we  would  further  observe  to  Your 
Lordships  that  the  Indians,  but  more  especially  the  Mohawks, 
who  are  now  intermixed  with  the  English  or  rather  Dutch 
settlements,  did  not  long  since  entertain  great  Jealousy  of  the 
Commissioners,  suspecting  that  they  were  desirous  to  have 
their  Nations  destroy'd  in  order  to  possess  their  Lands,  and 
this  Jealousy  broke  out  in  a  remarkable  manner  about  the 
time  of  the'Commencement  of  the  War  with  France,  and  we 
are  affrald  may  be  again  renewed  on  the  News  of  Peace. 

Also  that  since  these  Commissioners  discovered  that  Govr. 
Clinton  was  resolved  to  discourage  by  all  means  any  Com- 

452 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

merce  or  Intercourse  with  Canada,  which  was  carried  on  by 
the  Assistance  of  the  Indians,  they  have  refused  to  Act  any 
longer  as  Commissrs  and  still  continue  so  to  do. 

We  would  also  observe  to  Your  Lordships  that  the  time  of 
Peace  is  the  most  proper  both  to  gain  sufficient  Intelligence 
of  the  Numbers  and  Situation  of  these  distant  Nations,  and  of 
the  Trade  that  may  be  carried  on  among  them  for  the  general 
Benefit  of  His  Majesty's  Subjects,  as  the  French  never  omit 
gaining  all  Advantages  of  this  kind  during  the  Continuance 
of  it,  and  if  care  is  not  taken  to  improve  the  Advantages  we 
now  have  among  all  the  Indian  Nations  to  the  Westward  of 
us  by  their  present  disaffection  towards  the  French  —  The 
French  will  succeed  in  the  assiduous  Artifices  which  they 
never  neglect,  in  order  to  make  the  English  lose  all  Esteem 
and  Influence  among  the  Indians. 

We  are  also  to  Acquaint  Your  Lordships  that  Commissrs 
from  the  Government  of  Massachusetts  Bay  presented  to  us 
at  Albany  a  Memorial  wherein  they  among  other  things 
pray'd  us  to  represent  to  His  Majesty  the  following  Prayer 
of  their  Memorial,  vizt. 

"Your  Memorialists  further  Pray  Your  Excellys  to  repre- 
sent to  His  Majesty  that  the  said  Govrs  of  Massachusetts  Bay 
and  New  York  with  New  Hampshire  (a  great  part  of  which 
last  mentioned  Government  had  always  been  defended  by 
the  said  Massachusetts  Province)  are  an  immediate  Barrier  to 
several  of  his  other  Colonies  and  Provinces  against  the  Enemy 
and  that  the  safety  and  security  of  all  his  Governments 
depends  on  the  defence  of  these  three  Governments  as  the 
rest  must  soon  share  the  same  fate  if  these  are  destroyed  and 
the  others  are  at  little  or  no  expence  for  the  Protection  of 
their  own  frontiers,  and  that  it  is  altogether  as  unreasonable 
that  the  Burthen  and  charge  of  this  Defence  and  the  resist- 
ance of  the  enemy  should  lay  wholly  upon  those  three  Colo- 
nies, as  that  the  charge  of  defending  any  Counties  in  Great 
Britain  that  may  be  invaded  should  be  confined  to  such 
Counties  alone,  and  all  the  rest  should  be  free  from  any  part 
thereof.  And  as  the  other  Governments  have  been  fre- 
quently invited  to  join  in  concerting  measures  for  carrying  on 

453 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  war  at  the  Expence  of  the  whole,  in  a  just  and  reasonable 
proportion,  but  all  Except  Connecticut  have  declined  treat- 
ing on  this  subject,  and  seem  determined  to  afford  no  assist- 
ance ;  We  therefore  humbly  desire  that  you  would  make 
earnest  application  to  His  Majesty,  that  he  would  be  gra- 
ciously pleased  so  far  to  interpose  as  that,  whilst  the  French 
remain  in  possession  of  Canada,  those  other  Governmts  who 
are  not  so  immediately  exposed  may  be  obliged  to  a  just  pro- 
portion of  the  charge  of  Defending  the  Inland  Territories  of 
the  three  Governments  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay,  New  York 
and  New  Hamsphire." 

We  agree  in  sentiments  with  the  Memorialists  and  would 
further  Represent  to  Your  Lordships  that  the  French  have 
gained  great  advantages  in  the  present  war  by  their  Fortress 
which  was  built  at  Crown  Point  in  time  of  Peace,  and  is  truely 
an  Incroachment  on  His  Majesties  territories  as  from  thence 
they  were  enabled  to  send  out  parties  of  Indians  and  French 
to  harrass  the  Frontiers  of  New  York  and  New  England  and  it 
served  their  parties  as  a  secure  retreat  in  case  of  their  being 
pursued  by  a  superior  force ;  it  being  only  three  days  travel- 
ling from  the  English  Frontiers  and  about  half  way  between 
Albany  and  Montreal  in  Canada ;  Whereas  the  parties  sent 
from  New  York  into  Canada  were  under  great  difficulties 
by  their  being  obliged  either  to  pass  near  that  Fortress  or  to 
go  a  great  way  round  thro'  a  vast  Mountainous  Desert,  and 
had  no  place  of  retreat  for  their  security,  or  for  recruiting 
either  with  Provision  or  Ammunition. 

For  these  reasons.  My  Lords,  it  was  to  be  wished  that  the 
French  could  be  induced  to  demolish  that  Fort,  as  an  In- 
croachment on  His  Majesties  Territories  But  whether  this  can 
be  obtained  or  not  it  seems  necessary  to  build  one  or  more 
Forts  near  some  of  the  most  considerable  Passes  towards 
Canada,  and  as  near  to  Crown  Point  as  conveniently  may  be, 
otherwise  the  Planters  will  be  discouraged  in  resettling  the 
Frontiers,  which  have  been  laid  Waste  in  this  War,  and  our 
Frontiers  will  not  advance  into  the  country  while  the  French 
will  be  continually  incroaching  upon  the  King's  territories 
by  New  Settlements. 

454 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

We  agree  likewise  with  the  Memorialists  that  it  is  not 
reasonable  that  the  building  of  these  Forts  and  the  other  De- 
fences of  the  Frontiers  should  be  at  the  Expence  of  the 
Northern  Colonies  only,  since  the  Southern  Colonies  are 
covered  by  the  Northern  ones,  and  reap  the  greatest  advan- 
tages from  their  Defence,  and  we  are  of  opinion  that  as  the 
Inhabitants  in  the  Southern  Colonies,  by  the  Defence  which 
the  Northern  Colonies  give  them,  have  the  Benefit  of  follow- 
ing their  several  occupations  In  safety,  and  are  freed  from  all 
the  Calamities  of  a  barbarous  war,  to  which  the  Inhabitants 
of  the  Northern  Colonies  are  Exposed,  the  Southern  Colonies, 
as  they  are  thereby  Enabled  so  they  ought  to  pay  a  larger 
proportion  to  the  charge  of  Defence,  than  otherwise  might  be 
thought  equitable. 

Upon  this  head  we  would  further  observe  to  Your  Lord- 
ships that  we  are  convinced  from  past  Experiments  that  the 
Colonies  will  never  agree  on  Quotas  for  that  purpose ;  and 
therefore  their  respective  Quotas  must  be  settled  by  Royal 
Instructions.  This  was  done  in  King  William's  Reign,  but 
their  present  state  is  so  much  altered,  particularly  Pensilvania  ^ 
so  much  more  increas'd  than  the  others,  that  the  Quotas  then 
settled  would  now  bear  no  proportion  to  the  Abilities  of  the 
respective  Colonies  and  it  is  necessary  for  us  likewise  to  ob- 
serve to  Your  Lordships  that  on  many  occasions  there  has 
been  so  little  Regard  paid  in  several  Colonies  to  the  Royal 
Instructions  that  it  Is  requisite  to  think  of  some  method  to 
inforce  them.  We  are  with  the  greatest  Regard, 
My  Lords, 

Your  Lordships  most  Obedient 
and  most  humble  Servants, 
G.  Clinton.     W.  Shirley. 

Fort  George  In  the  City 

of  New  York,  i8th  Augt.  1748. 

^  So  long  as  the  Northern  colonies  protected  Pennsylvania 
against  attack  from  the  west  the  demand  for  an  increased 
force  from  that  colony  was  perhaps  justified.  If  the  protection 
of  the  Ohio  frontier  fell  on  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia,  the  case 
was  diflferent. 

455 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE  DUKE  OF  BEDFORD  ^ 

Boston,  N.  England  Octr.  24,  1748. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

I  am  honour'd  with  your  Grace's  letters  of  the  7th  of  May, 
28th  of  June  and  9th  of  August  last,  and  have  caus'd  due 
obedience  to  be  paid  within  this  Province  to  His  Majesty's 
commands  signify'd  to  me  in  'em ;  as  also  with  another  letter 
from  your  Grace  of  the  loth  of  May,  acquainting  me  that 
His  Majesty  does  not  consent  that  the  soldiers  which  were 
rals'd  for  the  late  intended  expedition  against  Canada  should 
retain  their  arms,  and  directing  me  to  use  the  proper  methods 
for  recovering  'em  from  them,  and  to  have  'em  return'd  into 
his  Majesty's  stores  as  soon  as  possible.  In  answer  to  which 
I  beg  leave  to  inform  your  Grace  that  before  the  soldiers  were 
paid  I  oblig'd  'em  either  to  return  their  arms  or  made  a  de- 
duction for  the  cost  of  'em  out  of  their  pay,  except  as  to  those 
who  had  lost  'em  by  inevitable  misfortune  in  actual  service ; 
and  as  to  such  part  of  the  arms  as  is  return'd,  I  have  fur- 
nish'd  the  soldiers  whom  Mr  Knowles  and  I,  by  His  Maj- 
esty's orders,  sent  from  hence  for  the  protection  of  Nova 
Scotia  and  part  of  Gorham's  Independent  Company  of 
Rangers  there,  out  of  'em  (there  not  being  spare  arms  in 
His  Majesty's  garrison  at  Annapolis  Royal,  as  I  was  in- 
formed, for  that  purpose)  and  the  remainder  are  lodg'd  in 
His  Majesty's  Castle  William  for  his  orders ;  which  I  hope 
will  be  approv'd  of. 

I  have  also  to  acquaint  your  Grace  that  I  shall  soon  be 
able  to  transmit  such  part  of  the  accounts  of  the  late  expedi- 
tion against  Canada  as  I  can  collect  from  the  several  Gov- 
ernments concern'd  in  it,  liquidated  and  adjusted,  to  your 
Grace,  pursuant  to  His  Majesty's  orders  signify'd  to  Mr 
Knowles  and  me,  in  a  letter  from  his  Grace  the  Duke  of  New- 
castle dated  the  30th  of  May  1747.  whereby  we  are  directed 
to  collect  those  accounts  and  to  transmit  'em  liquidated  and 

^  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  901,  p.  241.  Another  copy  dated  Oct.  25 
in  C.  O.  5,  45,  p.  131.     See  also  Docts.  rel.  Col.  Hist.  N.  Y.  6,  457. 

456 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

adjusted,  with  the  proper  vouchers  In  order  to  be  laid  before 
the  Parliament  that  provision  might  be  made  for  payment  of 
'em.^  And  I  trouble  your  Grace  with  the  mention  of  this, 
here,  because  I  am  informed  that  the  governments  of  Rhode 
Island  and  Connecticut  have,  by  their  Agents,  offer'd  the 
bills  at  the  Treasury  of  the  Paymaster  General's  Office  for  the 
amount  of  the  expence  charg'd  by  them  to  the  Crown  on 
account  of  that  expedition,  which  if  they  are  paid  before 
your  Grace  receives  the  account  as  it  is  liquidated  and  ad- 
justed here,  may  occasion  the  payment  of  a  considerable 
sum,  which  you  may  possibly  be  of  opinion  ought  not  to  have 
been  allow'd  those  two  governments,  and  very  probably  It 
may  be  the  sam.e  case  in  respect  of  other  governments. 
Wherefore  I  think  it  my  duty  to  apprize  your  Grace  of  it,  to 
prevent  any  premature  payment.  I  am,  with  the  most 
dutiful  regard,  My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  humble  and 
most  Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Bedford.^ 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

Boston,  N.  England  Octr.  28,  1748. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

As  I  am  indebted  to  your  Grace's  patronage  for  my  Situa- 
tion in  this  province,  and  the  Trusts  which  his  Majesty  has 

^  See  Shirley  to  Bedford,  Jan.  10  and  Feb.  27,  1748/9,  -post^  pp. 
460  and  470. 

2  John  Russell,  4th  Duke  of  Bedford,  was  born  Sept.  30,  1710, 
and  succeeded  his  elder  brother  as  Duke  Oct.  23,  1732.  He  be- 
came 1st  Lord  of  the  Admiralty  Dec.  25,  1744,  and  Secretary  of 
State  for  the  Southern  Department  four  years  later.  After  much 
bickering  with  Newcastle  he  resigned  this  post  June  13,  1751-  He 
became  Lord  Lieutenant  of  Ireland  later  and  tried  in  vain  to 
reconcile  Fox  and  Pitt  in  1755. 

3  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32yiy^  218.  A  transcript  is  in  the 
Library  of  Congress. 

457 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

been  pleas'd  to  repose  in  me  in  consequence  of  the  Service 
I  have  been  engag'd  in,  I  hope  your  Grace  will  permit  me  to 
have  recourse  to  you,  now  my  Conduct  has  in  some  Instances 
been  call'd  in  question,  not  only  as  it  is  natural  for  me  so  to 
do,  but  as  I  took  upon  myself  to  be  accountable  to  your  Grace 
for  my  general  Behaviour  in  his  Majesty's  Service. 

I  had  persuaded  myself,  my  Lord,  that  since  I  have  had 
the  Honour  of  being  employ'd  by  his  Majesty,  I  had  devoted 
myself  to  his  Service  with  the  utmost  Attention,  and  ac- 
quitted myself  upon  every  occasion  with  the  strictest  Fi- 
delity, and  from  the  frequent  Approbation  my  Conduct  has 
been  honour'd  with  by  his  Majesty,  as  well  as  your  Grace, 
have  been  induc'd  to  think  that  I  was  not  mistaken ;  but  as 
I  have  receiv'd  Accounts  that  some  part  of  my  Behaviour 
has  been  lately  represented  in  a  very  different  light,  and  that 
I  lye  under  the  heavy  Charge  of  having  consulted  my  own 
private  Interest  at  the  Expence  of  my  Honour  and  my  Duty 
to  his  Majesty,  I  am  under  a  Necessity  of  entring  into  a 
Vindication  of  it. 

It  has,  my  Lord,  I  am  credibly  inform'd,  been  insinuated 
to  Mr.  Pelham  that  I  have  made  Advantages  to  myself  by 
having  had  the  Direction  of  the  Publick  Expence,  with  which 
the  late  design'd  Expedition  against  Canada  has  been  at- 
tended ;  and  the  Secretary  at  War  has  acquainted  me  that 
complaints  have  been  made  of  my  disposal  of  the  Blank 
Commissions,  his  Majesty  has  been  pleas'd  to  intrust  me  with 
filling  up  for  the  Regiment  under  my  Command. 

I  have  therefore  transmitted  an  exact  State  of  my  Con- 
duct, so  far  as  it  relates  to  the  first  Article  to  Mr.  Pelham, 
before  whom  that  more  immediately  lyes ;  and  so  far  as  it 
relates  to  my  Regiment  I  have  lay'd  it  before  Mr.  Fox,  and 
shall  not  descend  here  to  a  particular  Account  of  these  Mat- 
ters, which  would  lead  me  into  a  long  Detail  of  Circumstances 
not  proper  for  me  to  trouble  your  Grace  with  at  present,  but 
would  only  beg  that  if  any  Aspersions  should  have  been 
thrown  upon  my  Character,  which  have  made  any  Impres- 
sion upon  your  Grace  to  my  Disadvantage,  you  would  be 
pleas'd  to  judge  of  my  Conduct  in  these  particulars  from  the 

4S8 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Accounts,  I  have  given  to  Mr.  Pelham  and  Mr.  Fox;  And 
shall  in  the  mean  time  only  beg  leave  to  say  in  general,  with 
regard  to  the  first  Article,  that  I  have  not  only  acted  with  the 
utmost  Fidelity,  and  in  the  most  frugal  manner,  but  done 
every  thing,  I  could  in  ease  of  the  Crown ;  and  made  Sav- 
ings of  very  large  Sums  of  Money  for  it,  that  I  have  declin'd 
taking  considerable  Advantages  to  myself  on  this  Occasion, 
which  others  have  thought  right  to  take,  and  have  not  avail'd 
myself  of  a  single  Opportunity  for  my  own  private  Interest 
in  any  shape  thro'  the  whole  course  of  this  Business,  but 
avoided  it  in  every  instance  of  my  Conduct.  And  with 
regard  to  the  other  Article  of  my  filling  up  the  blank  Com- 
missions, which  his  Majesty  was  pleas'd  to  entrust  me  with, 
I  beg  leave  to  assure  your  Grace  that  I  have  in  that  also, 
and  every  other  part  of  my  Conduct  relating  to  my  Regi- 
ment, according  to  the  best  of  my  Judgment  acted  with 
Fidelity  to  his  Majesty,  and  strict  Honour  to  the  Gen- 
tlemen concern'd  in  the  Expedition  against  Cape  Breton ; 
And  I  can  but  hope  from  the  Account  I  have  given  Mr. 
Fox  of  the  peculiar  Circumstances  of  my  Regiment,  which 
had  been  misrepresented  to  him,  and  of  his  Majesty's 
Orders  to  me  upon  this  Occasion,  that  he  will  be  of  Opinion 
that  I  have  in  no  Instance  been  unfaithful  in  the  Execution 
of  'em. 

Upon  the  whole,  my  Lord,  I  can  with  great  Truth  say  that 
I  am  not  conscious  to  myself  of  the  least  Breach  of  Trust  in 
this  Branch  of  my  Duty,  but  if  I  should  be  thought  to  have 
taken  any  Step  in  it,  which  is  not  strictly  regular  according 
to  the  Rule  in  common  Cases,  or  which  may  happen,  thro' 
the  Multiplicity  of  Business  I  have  been  constantly  engag'd 
in,  not  to  have  been  so  well  consider'd  or  guarded  as  it  might 
possibly  have  been,  I  shall  yet  hope,  my  Lord,  for  a  favour- 
able Construction  of  it  from  your  Grace,  and  that  after 
having  given  in  every  other  part  of  my  Conduct  abundant 
proof  of  the  most  disinterested  Regard  and  Zeal  for  his  Maj- 
esty's Service,  not  only  in  the  Execution  of  the  Royal  Orders 
but  by  voluntarily  engaging  in  some  most  difficult  and  fa- 
tiguing Undertakings,  whereby,  I  hope  I  may  on  this  occa- 

459 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

sion  be  allow'd  to  say,  I  have  contributed  largely  towards  his 
Service  and  the  Interest  of  the  Nation ;  the  present  State  of 
both  which  how  different  it  might  have  been,  if  instead  of 
Nova  Scotia's  being  preserv'd  and  Cape  Breton's  being  gain'd 
from  the  Enemy,  his  Majesty  had  lost  the  first  and  they  held 
the  last  I  will  submit  to  your  Grace's  Judgment,  and  having 
acquir'd  by  a  Series  of  faithful  Services  not  only  an  unexcep- 
tionable but  a  distinguish'd  Character  under  your  Grace's 
patronage,  I  hope  I  say,  my  Lord,  that  such  an  Error,  if  any 
such  should  have  slip'd  from  me,  will  not  be  sufhcent  to 
deprive  me  of  the  least  part  of  his  Majesty's  Favour,  or  of  the 
Support  which  your  Grace  has  hitherto  honour'd  me  with. 

I  have  only  further  to  beg  your  Grace's  Excuse  for  having 
given  you  so  much  Trouble  upon  this  Occasion,  and  to  sub- 
scribe myself  with  the  most  dutiful  Regard. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Oblig'd  and 
most  Devoted  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed  : 

Boston.  Octr.  28,  1748. 
Governor  Shirley. 
5.  Janry.  3. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE  DUKE  OF  BEDFORD  ^ 

Boston,  Jany.  10,  1748. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

I  now  inclose  your  Grace  the  Accompt  of  the  Expences  of 
the  Colony  of  Connecticutt  adjusted,  and  liquidated,  with 
the  case  of  the  Troops  rais'd  within  that  Government  stated 
with  regard  to  their  pay  from  October  1746  to  October  1747 
for  your  Grace's  consideration  ;  and  was  in  hopes  with  this  to 

»RR.O.,  CO.  5,45,  P-84. 

460 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

have  transmitted  your  Grace  the  accompts  of  the  Governmts. 
of  New  Jersey,  and  Maryland,  and  the  Massachusetts  Bay, 
but  shall  not  be  able  to  finish  the  same,  with  such  part  of  the 
Accompts  of  New  York,  Pensilvania,  and  Virginia  as  have 
been  sent  to  me,  as  also  the  Accompt  of  the  Province  of  New 
Hampshire,  'till  the  next  Vessell  sails,  which  may  be  in  about 
a  week,  by  which  time,  I  hope  to  have  compleated  'em,  and 
to  transmit  'em  to  your  Grace. 

In  the  mean  while  that  no  time  may  be  lostfor  the  Examina- 
tion of  the  Muster  rolls  of  the  Troops  rais'd  within  the  sev- 
eral Governments  of  New  York,  New  Jersey,  Pensilvania, 
Maryland  and  Virginia  none  of  which  have  been  sent  to  me, 
I  inclose  a  Copy  of  the  Circular  letter  wrote  by  Mr  Knowles 
and  me  to  the  several  Governors  containing  the  rules,  we 
agreed  upon  for  making  up  their  Muster-rolls,  which,  if 
thought  proper,  may  be  made  use  of  in  the  Examination  of 
'em ;  To  which  I  have  only  to  add  that  Five  per  Cent  is  or- 
dered to  be  deducted  out  of  the  pay  both  of  Officers  and 
Men,  and  a  Day's  pay  for  Chelsea  Hospital,  out  of  the  men's 
pay,  with  the  Cost  of  the  Arms  of  such  Men,  as  have  not 
return'd  'em,  except  in  cases,  where  they  were  lost  in  Service 
or  by  inevitable  misfortune ;  and  that  the  pay  forfeited  by 
Deserters,  after  paymt  to  their  Officers  out  of  it  for  all  sup- 
plies advanc'd  to  'em  in  the  time  of  their  Service,  is  to  be 
deducted,  as  I  have  mention'd  in  former  letters  to  your 
Grace. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be  with  the  most  Dutifull  regard, 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Devoted 
and  most  Obedient  Servt, 

W.  Shirley. 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Bedford. 

Endorsed: 

Boston,  lo  Janry,  1748 
Govr  Shirley 
^  7th  Febry 

461 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE  DUKE  OF  BEDFORD ' 

Boston,  January  31,  1748. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

I  think  it  my  Duty  to  acquaint  your  Grace,  that  I  have 
brought  the  Assembly  within  my  Government  into  passing 
an  Act  (a  Copy  of  which  I  have  transmitted  to  the  Lords 
Commissioners  of  Trade,  and  another  will  be  presented  to 
your  Grace  by  the  Agent  for  the  Province  in  order  to  be  lay'd 
before  his  Majesty  in  Council  for  his  Royal  Approbation) 
for  putting  an  end  to  the  Paper  Currency  of  this  Province, 
upon  the  arrival  here  of  the  Money  granted  by  Parliament 
for  the  reimbursement  of  their  Expences  in  taking  and 
securing  Cape  Breton,  by  forthwith  drawing  in  and  exchang- 
ing their  Outstanding  Bills  of  Credit,  for  Silver  at  the  Rate 
of  £10  in  bills  of  what  is  called  here  the  old  tenour  for 
£1  Sterling  (which  under  the  present  Circumstances  of 
the  Province  I  look  upon  to  be  the  most  equal  rate,  that 
can  be  settled  between  the  Possessors  of  the  Bills  and  thii 
Government,  as  also  between  the  Creditors  and  Debtors)  as 
far  as  the  Sterling  Sum  granted  by  Parliament  will  hold  out, 
and  drawing  in  the  remainder  of  the  bills  (which  are  com- 
puted at  £300,000  old  tenour  or  £75,000  of  the  New  Tenourj 
and  of  the  Value  of  £30,000  Sterling  at  the  before  mention'd 
Rate)  by  a  Tax  lay'd  on  the  Year  1749,  so  that  the  whole 
Paper  Currency  of  this  Province  will  be  sunk,  according  to 
the  Provisions  made  in  this  Act,  within  the  Year  1750.^ 

1  R  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  45,  p.  147. 

2  The  Massachusetts  Act  referred  to  by  Shirley  was  confirmed 
by  the  King  in  Council  on  June  28.  It  had  been  referred  to  the 
Committee  on  March  16  and  to  the  Board  of  Trade  on  April  13. 
The  report  of  the  Board  of  Trade  made  on  May  11  and  agreed 
to  by  the  Committee  of  the  Council  follows : 

That  they  have  taken  the  said  Act  into  their  Consideration  and 
also  consulted  Mr.  Lamb  One  of  Your  Majestys  Counsel  at  Law 
thereupon  who  has  reported  to  them,  That  the  said  Act  Is  imper- 
fectly worded  concerning  the  Receipt  of  the  Money  which  has  been 
granted  by  Parliament  for  the  Use  of  this  Province ;  for  there  are 
no  express  Words  that  Authorize  Sir  Peter  Warren  and  the  others 

462 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

And  as  to  the  Bills  of  Credit  issued  by  the  Governments  of 
Rhode  Island,  New  Hampshire,  and  Connecticutt,  none  of 
which  have  yet  taken  any  Steps  towards  putting  an  end  to 
their  respective  bills,  the  currency  of  them  within  this  Prov- 

to  receive  the  Money,  but  they  are  Authorized  and  empowered 
to  give  a  full  Discharge  for  whensoever  the  same  shall  have  been 
issued  without  mentioning  to  whom  it  is  to  be  issued,  That  they 
are  also  Authorized  to  Address  Your  Majesty  to  Order  the  Money 
to  be  transported  in  Foreign  Coined  Silver  on  Board  Your  Majestys 
Ships,  and  to  pursue  such  Instructions  as  the  General  Court  of 
the  said  Province  shall  think  necessary  concerning  the  transporting 
the  said  Money,  And  that  he  had  applied  for  the  Instructions  given 
to  Sir  Peter  Warren  &c.  and  found  thereby  that  the  Act  was  thus 
Worded  with  a  Design  to  have  the  Money  transported  by  Your 
Majesty's  Order  according  to  the  Address  rather  than  to  be  received 
by  Sir  Peter  Warren  &c.  to  save  the  Charges  of  Freight  and  In- 
surance and  the  Risque  of  the  Money  being  transported  and  in 
case  they  do  not  succeed  in  getting  the  Money  transported  that 
way  then  Sir  Peter  Warren  &c.  are  directed  by  their  Instructions 
to  receive  the  Money  themselves  and  transport  the  same  in  such 
manner  as  is  therein  directed  :  But  that  he  has  no  Objection  thereto 
in  point  of  Law.  However  the  said  Lords  Commissioners  laid 
before  this  Committee  their  Observations  upon  such  other  parts 
of  the  said  Act  as  appeared  to  them  to  deserve  the  Consideration 
of  this  Committee. 

The  two  great  Objects  of  this  Act  are  — 

1st.  Entirely  to  sink  and  Abolish  all  the  Paper  Bills  of  Credit 
at  present  Outstanding  in  the  said  Province,  and  2ndly.  By 
means  of  the  Money  granted  by  Parliament  for  reimbursing  to 
the  said  province  their  Expences  in  taking  and  securing  to  the 
Crown  of  Great  Britain  the  Island  of  Cape  Breton  and  its  De- 
pendencies, to  substitute  in  lieu  of  the  Bills  of  Credit  an  invariable 
Silver  Currency  for  the  future. 

That  the  Legislature  of  the  said  Province  in  Order  to  carry 
the  beneficial  purposes  of  this  Act  into  Execution  in  a  manner  as 
effectual  and  as  Equitable  as  the  Circumstances  of  their  Situation 
will  admit  have  thought  it  necessary  to  exchange  their  outstand- 
ing Bills  for  Silver  at  the  Rate  of  Ten  pounds  in  Bills  of  what  is 
called  the  Old  Tenor  for  One  pound  Sterling  (which  is  less  than 
Half  the  Nominal  Value  affixed  to  the  said  Bills  by  the  several  Acts 
for  creating  them)  at  which  Rate  the  whole  Paper  Currency  will 
be  Sunk  except  the  Sum  of  Seventy  five  Thousand  pounds  New 
Tenor  for  the  sinking  of  which  provision  is  made  by  a  Tax  to  be 
levied  in  the  present  Year  so  that  the  whole  will  be  entirely  abolished 

463 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Ince  Is  guarded  against  In  the  Act  by  such  Penalties,  and 
disqualifications,  upon  the  Inhabitants,  who  shall  receive  or 
pass  'em  away  in  Payment,  as  will,  I  hope,  preserve  a  medium 

within  the  Year  1750  provided  the  Money  granted  by  Parliament 
arrives  in  the  province  within  that  time. 

But  as  the  Alteration  made  by  this  Act  in  the  Nominal  Value 
so  set  upon  the  said  Bills  of  Credit  may  appear  at  the  first  View 
to  be  in  some  Degree  a  Breach  of  the  publick  Faith  of  the  Prov- 
ince and  an  Injustice  to  the  possessors  of  the  said  Bills  The  said 
Lords  Commissioners  think  it  proper  to  observe  that  the  said 
Bills  of  Credit  have  by  frequent  and  large  Emissions  of  them  both 
before  and  since  the  breaking  out  of  the  late  War  as  well  as  by 
many  other  concurrent  Circumstances  been  from  time  to  time 
greatly  depreciated  And  that  it  is  represented,  that  by  far  the 
greatest  part  thereof  have  passed  from  hand  to  hand  and  been 
received  by  the  present  possessors  at  even  a  lower  Rate  than  Is 
set  upon  them  by  this  Act  therefore  should  they  be  redeemed  at 
their  Nominal  Value  (which  at  the  very  time  of  their  Emission 
they  never  really  bore)  as  the  first  possessors  never  did  or  could 
receive  near  that  Nominal  Value  so  it  would  be  unreasonable  that 
the  present  possessors  should  avail  themselves  of  a  Benefit  which 
they  have  never  purchased  and  cannot  in  Equity  be  entituled  to. 
If  to  these  are  added  the  following  Considerations  The  exhausted 
Condition  of  this  Province.  The  great  Scarcity  or  rather  total 
Want  of  Silver  there.  The  excessive  Quantity  of  Bills  now  Cur- 
rent. The  Distance  of  the  periods  for  calling  them  in  by  Taxes. 
The  little  Expectations  the  possessors  of  the  Bills  could  entertain, 
and  indeed  the  absolute  impossibility  of  their  being  exchanged 
for  Silver  by  any  other  means  than  the  Application  of  the  Money 
granted  by  Parliament  to  that  purpose,  This  must  seem  to  be  the 
most  equal  Rate  that  could  be  fixed  between  the  possessors  of  the 
Bills  and  the  Government  and  so  it  is  represented  to  the  said  Lords 
Commissioners  by  Mr.  Shirley  the  Governor  of  that  Province. 

That  in  Order  to  establish  a  Silver  Currency  for  the  future  In 
lieu  of  the  said  Bills  of  Credit,  there  Is  a  Clause  in  the  Act  which 
declares  that  all  Bargains  Contracts  Debts  Dues  &c.  which  shall 
be  made  or  agreed  after  the  31st  of  March  1750  shall  be  In  Silver 
at  Six  Shillings  and  Eight  pence  per  Ounce  and  that  all  Spanish 
Milled  Pieces  of  Eight  of  full  Weight  shall  be  accounted  taken 
and  paid  at  the  Rate  of  Six  Shillings  per  Piece  for  the  Discharge 
of  every  Contract  or  Bargain  after  the  said  31st  March  1750  and 
the  Halves  Quarters  and  other  lesser  pieces  of  the  same  Coin  to 
be  taken  or  paid  in  the  same  proportion  with  a  penalty  of  Fifty 
pounds  upon  any  person  taking  or  paying  them  at  a  higher  Rate 

464 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  Silver  within  this  Province,  'till  a  final  Period  can  be  put 
to  the  whole  paper  Currency  in  New  England  by  an  Act  of 
Parliament,  for  obtaining  which  Instructions  are  sent  to  the 
Agent  of  the  Province  to  make  a  proper  Application. 

which  said  Rates  are  agreeable  to  the  Act  of  the  6th  of  Queen 
Anne  for  ascertaining  the  Rates  of  Foreign  Coins  in  the  Planta- 
tions in  America. 

The  said  Lords  Commissioners  likewise  reported,  That  Pro- 
vision is  made  by  this  Act  to  prevent  the  Bills  of  Credit  of  the 
Neighbouring  Governments  of  Rhode  Island,  Connecticut  and 
New  Hampshire  who  have  not  yet  taken  any  steps  to  abolish  them 
from  passing  Current  In  the  Massachusetts  Bay  and  tho'  the  Oaths 
and  penalties  imposed  to  prevent  the  same  may  appear  of  an 
extraordinary  nature  yet  as  the  Governor  of  that  province  hath 
represented  to  the  said  Lords  Commissioners  that  all  Pecuniary 
Penalties  alone  though  imposed  in  the  strictest  manner  have  been 
found  by  Experience  to  have  had  no  Effect  in  this  Case  several 
Penal  Laws  for  that  purpose  having  proved  Ineffectual  and  that 
there  seems  to  be  a  necessity  for  having  recourse  to  other  pro- 
visions which  may  be  effectual,  and  also  that  the  provisions  of  this 
Act  are  no  more  than  what  the  Nature  of  the  Case  requires  In 
Order  to  suppress  an  Evil  which  prevails  so  strongly  and  the  con- 
tinuation of  which  will  defeat  the  good  Intention  of  this  Province 
in  sinking  their  own  Bills,  The  said  Lords  Commissioners  hope 
they  will  appear  to  be  necessary  for  the  effectual  Execution  of 
this  Act  especially  as  these  provisions  are  only  temporary  from 
March  1750  to  March  1754. 

The  said  Lords  Commissioners  further  observe  that  this  Act 
repeals  several  Clauses  In  former  Acts  which  have  been  confirmed 
by  Your  Majesty  whereby  these  Bills  of  Credit  were  to  have  been 
called  In  by  Taxes  to  be  levied  in  certain  Years  without  having 
a  Clause  Inserted  therein  suspending  the  Execution  of  it  untill 
Your  Majestys  pleasure  be  known,  but  as  that  Repeal  Is  only 
Conditional  In  Case  the  Money  granted  by  Parliament  arrives 
within  the  Time  limited,  In  which  Case  the  whole  end  and  Intended 
Operation  of  those  Clauses  will  be  performed  In  a  more  beneficial 
manner  and  that  if  that  Condition  should  not  happen  then  those 
Clauses  will  continue  in  force  and  the  outstanding  Bills  of  Credit 
will  be  drawn  into  the  Treasury  and  Sunk  by  the  Taxes  laid  on 
the  several  Years  till  1760  In  the  same  manner  as  if  this  Act  had 
not  been  made  The  said  Lords  Commissioners  therefore  submitted 
whether  the  not  having  such  a  Clause  Inserted  therein  may  not 
be  dispensed  with  and  the  rather  as  Your  Majesty's  Governor 
of  the  said  province  has  represented  that  a  Dispute  with  the 
VOL.  I  —  2  H  465 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

As  I  look  upon  the  benefit  arising  to  the  province  from  its 
reimbursement,  by  enabling  it  to  put  an  end  to  its  paper 
currency,  which  has  been  productive  of  many  mischiefs 
within  it,  and  the  Bane  of  the  Trade  from  Great  Britain  with 
the  Colonies  of  New  England,  and  to  introduce  in  its  room 
a  Silver  Currency,  which  will  lay  a  lasting  foundation  for 
the  prosperity  of  those  Colonies,  and  establish  the  Trade  of 
their  Mother  Country  with  them  upon  a  better  foot  for  the 
future ;  to  be  of  more  value  than  the  money  itself,  I  hope  the 
Lords  of  Trade,  to  whom  I  presume  the  consideration  of  the 
Act  will  be  of  course  referr'd,  and  I  have  been  particular  in 
my  Observations  upon  it,  will  make  a  favourable  report,  and 
that  it  will  be  honour'd  with  your  Grace's  recommendation 
of  it  for  his  Majesty's  Royal  Approbation ;  and  that  your 
Grace  will  be  pleas'd  to  promote  the  bringing  the  whole 
Paper  Currency  of  New  England  to  a  Period  by  the  Inter- 
position of  the  Parliament,  with  regard  to  the  other  Colonies 
of  New  England,  especially  those  of  Rhode  Island  and  New 
Hampshire. 

I  believe,  My  Lord,  no  person  acquainted  with  the  natural 
fondness  of  the  People  of  New  England  for  Paper  money, 
the  present  Generation  of  whom  have  known  no  other  money, 
would  a  year  ago  have  thought  it  possible  to  have  brought  an 
Assembly  of  this  Province  into  passing  an  Act  for  abolishing 
it :  The  principal  Inducements  for  doing  it  now  were  first 
the  eff^ects  of  an  Act,  which  I  insisted  upon  their  making 
at  my  entrance  Into  the  Administration  of  the  Government, 
before  I  would  consent  to  a  new  Emission  of  Bills  of  Credit, 
for  securing  to  the  Creditors  the  Value,  every  Debt  was  of,  at 
the  time  of  it's  being  contracted,  against  any  subsequent  De- 
preciation of  the  Bills,  in  which  it  was  payable ;  which  though 

Assembly  upon  that  Subject  would  have  prevented  the  passing 
this  Act  so  advantageous  to  the  Welfare  of  that  province  and  so 
necessary  to  the  Commerce  of  this  Kingdom. 

Upon  the  whole  the  said  Lords  Commissioners  are  of  Opinion 
that  it  may  be  advisable  to  lay  the  said  Act  before  Your  Majesty 
for  Your  Royal  Confirmation  [Acts  of  the  Privy  Council,  1749, 
pp.  228,  231,  249-52,  283,  quoted  by  James  Munro,  Acts  of  the 
Privy  Council  (Colonial),  4,  85]. 

466 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

it  has  been  In  a  great  measure  eluded,  has  had  so  much  Effect 
as  to  make  the  Debtors  sometimes  sick  of  the  Depreciations 
of  the  Bills  (which  are  very  sudden  and  irregular)  and  on 
that  account  less  averse  to  putting  an  end  to  'em ;  and  2dly 
the  prospect  of  being  eas'd  of  the  heavy  load  of  Taxes  lay'd 
on  several  Years  next  ensuing,  by  having  the  Publick  Debt 
paid  off  with  the  sum  granted  by  Parliament ;  which  indeed 
would  be  a  most  seasonable  Relief  to  the  People,  and  con- 
tribute greatly  to  their  Prosperity  and  Satisfaction  at  this 
Juncture  :  But  I  am  perswaded  these  motives  would  not  of 
themselves  have  prevail'd  in  the  House  of  Representatives, 
had  not  their  present  Speaker  Mr  Hutchinson,  in  concert 
with  whom  alone  this  Act  was  originally  Plann'd,  and  all 
measures  previously  settled,  by  his  extraordinary  Abilities 
and  uncommon  Influence  with  the  Members,  manag'd  and 
conducted  it  through  the  Opposition  and  Difficulties  it  long 
labour'd  under  in  passing  the  House ;  being  almost  the  whole 
Business  of  five  Weeks  there ;  which  I  mention  to  your  Grace 
because,  as  by  the  Charter  of  the  Province,  the  Election  of 
Members  of  the  Assembly  Is  annual,  and  it  Is  uncertain  what 
turn  the  passing  of  this  Act  may  give  to  ensuing  Elections, 
I  could  not  answer  for  another  Assembly's  passing  the  like 
Act,  if  this  should  not  take  Effect ;  which  If  It  fails  of  doing 
the  Points  intended  to  be  secur'd  by  it  must  run  a  great 
Risque  of  being  lost. 

For  avoiding  this  Danger,  I  should  have  been  glad,  if  I 
could  have  Induc'd  the  Assembly  to  have  pass'd  the  Act, 
without  supposing  any  particular  time  for  the  Arrival  of  the 
Money  ^  granted  by  Parliament,  or  to  have  suppos'd  a  longer 
day  for  the  Payment  of  It ;  but  that  could  not  be  done ; 
for  the  View  of  It's  coming  In  time  to  ease  the  People  of  the 
great  arrear  of  their  Taxes  (which  lye  heavy  upon  'em)  was, 
as  I  have  observ'd  to  your  Grace,  one  of  the  main  induce- 
ments with  those,  who  Voted  for  the  Act. 

My  Desire  of  seeing  these  great  Points  for  the  Interests  of 

^  The  amount  granted  by  Parliament  on  Apr.  4  was  given  by 
Christopher  Kilby  in  a  letter  of  April  6  to  the  speaker  of  the 
Massachusetts  House  of  Representatives  as  £183,649. 

467 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  Colonies  of  New  England  and  the  Trade  of  their  Mother 
Country,  with  'em  settled,  and  promoting  his  Majesty's  Serv- 
ice by  that  means,  have  occasion'd  my  being  more  particu- 
lar in  my  Observations  to  your  Grace  upon  this  Act  than  I 
should  otherwise  have  been ;  which  I  hope  Your  Grace  will 
not  disapprove. 

I  am  with  the  most  Dutiful  Regard 
My  Lord  Duke 

Your  Grace's  most  obedient 
and  most  Devoted  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Bedford. 

Endorsed: 

Boston  31  Janry  1748-9  ' 

Govr  Shirley 
3  17  Apl. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  JAMES  HAMILTON  ^ 

Boston,  February  20th,  1748. 
Sir, 

I  have  lately  receiv'd  Intelligence  (which  your  Honour 
will  find  contain'd  in  the  inclos'd  Paper,)^  of  the  Prepara- 

^  I  Penn.  Arch.  2,  20. 

^  The  paper  referred  to  as  inclosed  was  the  following  from  Israel 
Williams  at  Hatfield  forwarded  by  Josiah  Willard  : 

Q     .  Hatfield,  Feby  13th,  1748. 

The  nth  Instant,  Col.  Willard  sent  a  Frenchman  to  me,  who, 
the  Wednesday  before  came  to  Fort  Dummer,  he  calls  his  name 
Jean  Orange,  and  gives  this  account  of  himself,  that  seven  days 
before  his  arrival  at  Fort  Dummer,  he  came  from  Crown  Point, 
where  he  had  been  for  some  time  a  soldier,  and  that  he  deserted 
the  service,  and  came  to  New  England  with  hopes  to  get  home  to 
France,  from  whence  he  came  about  six  years  ago.  Its  possible 
he  may  give  the  true  reason  of  his  running  away  ;  he  is  very  desirous 
of  getting  to  Boston,  and  having  an  opportunity  to  send  him  along 
without  much  charge  to  the  Government;  I  have  ordered  him  to 
your  Excellency  to  be  disposed  of  as  you  think  proper;    he  says 

468 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

tlons  making  by  the  French  of  Canada,  for  the  Settlement 
of  the  Lands  near  Crown  Point ;  and  I  make  no  Question  of 
the  truth  of  it,  it  being  a  thing  I  always  expected  would  be 
attempted  by  them  immediately  upon  a  Peace,  and  I  look 
upon  the  affair  to  be  of  such  Consequence,  as  to  require  the 
utmost  Efforts  of  the  English  Governments  in  every  proper 
way  to  prevent  it ;  and,  (besides  it  being  a  matter  of  general 
Concern  to  all  his  Majesty's  Colonies  on  the  Continent  of 
America,  who  may  in  Process  of  time  be  equally  indangered 
by  the  spreading  and  Growth  of  the  French  upon  our  Borders,) 
as  your  Colony,  as  well  as  ours,  will  be  more  immediately 
affected  herewith,  I  judg'd  it  necessary  to  communicate  this 
Intelligence  to  you,  and  to  desire  that  you  would  maturely 
consider  this  matter,  and  let  me  have  your  Opinion  what 
may  be  proper  to  be  done  by  the  English  Governments  (in 
Case  the  French  should  make  these  Incroachments  upon 
his  Majesty's  Territories,)  for  preventing  them  before  it  be 
too  late. 

I  am,  with  very  great  Regard, 
Sir, 

Your  Honour's  most 

obedt  Humble  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
The  honble  James  Hamilton,  Esqr. 

Endorsed:  Governor  Shirley's  Letter  to  Governor  Hamil- 
ton, dated  20th  Febry,  1748. 

there  is  about  an  hundred  Soldiers  now  at  Crown  Point,  no  Indians 
out,  and  that  both  French  and  Indians  are  in  full  Expectation  of 
an  Established  peace.  Also,  that  the  French  are  preparing,  and 
intend  very  soon  to  come  and  settle  the  Lands  near  Crown  Point, 
it  seems  they  little  fear  the  success  of  Mr.  Bollans  memorial,  (if 
they  have  ever  heard  of  it)  or  the  Attempts  made  to  procure  the 
Demolition  of  that  Fort,  and  their  Removal  from  thence.  Our  people 
that  have  been  there  one  and  all,  represent  the  lands  East  and 
South  of  Crown  Point  for  a  great  extent,  exceeding  rich,  valuable 
and  suitable  for  Settlements. 

Examined, 

J.  WiLLARD,  Secry. 
Endorsed:  Extract  of  a  Letter  from  one  at  Hatfield  to  Governor 
Shirley,  dated  13th  Febry,   1748. 

469 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE  DUKE  OF  BEDFORD  ^ 

Boston,  February  27,  1748. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

In  Obedience  to  his  Majesty's  Commands,  which  I  re- 
ceiv'd  in  a  Letter  from  his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle,^ 
directing  me  to  send  him  a  Plan  of  a  Civil  Government  for 
the  Province  of  Nova  Scotia,  to  be  laid  before  his  Majesty 
for  his  Royal  Consideration,  I  now  transmit  your  Grace 
some  general  heads  of  a  Charter  Government,  which  I  would 
humbly  propose  to  be  exercis'd  there  as  soon  as  the  Inhabit- 
ants shall  be  in  a  Condition  to  receive  it,  and  of  a  temporary 
Form  of  Government  adapted  to  the  present  Circumstances 
of  the  Country  in  the  mean  time ;  upon  which  I  shall  only 
farther  observe  to  your  Grace,  that  I  have  made  the  Charter 
of  their  late  Majesties  King  William  and  Queen  Mary  granted 
to  the  Province  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  the  Basis  of  this 
Plan ;  as  I  think,  a  near  Conformity  of  the  Civil  Govern- 
ment of  Nova  Scotia  to  that  of  this  Province,  may  be  a  great 
advantage  to  the  former  for  attracting  New  England  Settlers 
to  live  there ;  and  that  with  the  Amendments  I  have  pro- 
posed (the  particular  reasons  for  making  which  are  annex'd 
to  'em)  it  may  answer  all  the  Ends  designed  by  his  Majesty 
in  erecting  a  Civil  Government  in  Nova  Scotia. 

I  have  not  mention'd  any  thing.  My  Lord,  here  concern- 
ing what  may  be  the  proper  method  for  his  Majesty  to  grant 
away  the  Lands  of  Nova  Scotia  in  the  most  advantageous 
manner  for  answering  the  Ends  of  his  Royal  Purposes ; 
under  what  Restrictions  those  should  be  laid  with  whom  he 
shall  be  pleas'd  to  intrust  the  Distribution  of  'em ;  upon 
what  Conditions  they  should  be  granted  to  the  New  Settlers, 
and  whether  any  and  what  Allowances  should  be  made  'em 
upon  their  first  Arrival,  in  order  to  encourage  'em  to  trans- 
plant themselves ;    not  having  so  fully  inform'd  my  self  of 

^  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  45,  p.  107.     See  General  Heads  of  Shirley's 
Plan  for  the  Civil  Government  of  Nova  Scotia,  post,  p.  472. 
^  Oct.  3,  1747,  ante,  p.  401. 

470 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

these  particulars,  as  I  hope  to  be  able  to  do  by  the  next  Op- 
portunity, when  I  shall  offer  your  Grace  my  Sentiments  upon 
that  head. 

I  have  likewise  omitted  saying  any  thing  upon  the  Article 
of  making  Nova  Scotia  a  free  Port  for  the  first  seven  years, 
which  I  believe  is  generally  one  of  the  privileges  granted  a 
new  settlement  for  drawing  Inhabitants  and  Trade  to  it, 
not  being  fully  satisfy'd  whether  it  may  not  have  a  more 
mischievous  influence  upon  the  Traders  from  all  the  neigh- 
bouring colonies,  whose  merchants  would  probably  shelter 
all  manner  of  illicit  trade  under  that  privilege  of  the  new 
Port,  than  it  would  be  of  Service  for  promoting  Settlements 
upon  the  Cape  Sable  Shoar;  for  which  reason  I  shall  not 
venture  to  propose  it,  'till  I  am  better  assur'd  of  the  ex- 
pediency of  it. 

I  am  sensible.  My  Lord,  how  unfinished  what  I  have  trans- 
mitted your  Grace  is ;    which,  was  I  upon  the  spot  I  might 
add,  or  correct  in  many  respects,  as  occasion  should  require ; 
and  in  matters  of  so  much  variety  and  importance,  it  is 
indeed    almost    impracticable    to    draw    up    general    Plans, 
which  shall  be  perfect  and  take  in  everything,  or  the  reason 
of  which  in  every  point  shall  be  so  evident  as  not  to  want 
being  set  in  a  clearer  light :    But  I  hope  what  I  have  sent 
may  be  sufficient  to  declare  my  sincere  and  zealous    dis- 
position for  promoting  his  Majesty's  Service,  and  the  general 
Interests  of  his  Colonies,  with  those  of  his  British  Dominions  : 
and  that  your  Grace  will  be  pleased  to  represent  my  endeav- 
ours for  doing  it  in  a  favourable  manner  to  his  Majesty. 
I  have  the  honour  to  be  with  the  most  dutiful  regard, 
My  Lord  Duke, 
Your  Grace's  most  Obedient 
and  most  Devoted  Servant 

W.  Shipley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Bedford. 
Endorsed: 

Boston  27  Febry  1748/9 
Govr.  Shirley 
^  17  April. 

471 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE  DUKE  OF  BEDFORD  ^ 

General  heads  of  a  Plan  of  a  Civil  Government  pro- 
pos'd  for  his  Majesty's  Province  of  Nova  Scotia. 

It  is  humbly  propos'd  that  the  Inhabitants  of  his  Maj- 
esty's Province  of  Nova  Scotia  shall  be  incorporated  by 
Royal  Charter  of  as  like  form  with  that  granted  by  King 
William  and  Queen  Mary,  dated  the  7th  of  October  1692, 
to  the  Inhabitants  of  the  Province  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay, 
as  the  circumstances  of  it  will  admit ;  and  with  the  same 
Powers,  Privileges  and  Franchises,  except  in  the  particulars, 
which  are  propos'd  to  be  alter'd  in  the  following  manner 
vizt. 

I.  That  in  the  Proviso  for  the  Reservation  of  the  Rights 
of  Private  Persons  or  Bodies  Politick  or  Corporate  to  any 
parcells  of  Land  within  the  province,  by  Virtue  of  former 
Grants,  the  Reservation  shall  be  conlin'd  to  the  Rights  of 
such,  who  have  comply'd  with  the  Conditions,  upon  which 
such  Prior  Grants  were  made  to  'em ;  and  as  the  whole 
province  was  by  their  said  late  Majesties  in  their  aforesaid 
Charter  granted  by  the  name  of  the  Country  or  Territory, 
commonly  called  Accadia  or  Nova  Scotia  to  the  Inhabitants 
of  the  Province  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay ;  it  is  humbly 
submitted  whether  that  Grant  should  not  be  declared  to  be 
Vacated  by  the  neglect  and  refusal  of  those  Inhabitants  to 
exercise  any  Jurisdiction  for  the  Government  of  it,  and  to 
defend  it  against  the  French,  who  thereupon  took  and  held 
Possession  of  it  'till  her  late  Majesty  Queen  Anne  regain'd 
it  by  Conquest;  or  by  whatever  other  cause  the  same  may 
be  suppos'd  to  have  been  forfeited  to  the  Crown,  or  (if  that 
is  the  case)  to  have  been  void  from  the  beginning. 

No  special  Reason  need  be  assign'd  for  this  alteration. 

^  P.  R.  O.,  C.  0.  5,  45,  p.  93.  This  document  is  here  printed  in 
full  as  indicating  Shirley's  ideas  of  the  best  methods  to  obtain  for 
Great  Britain  reliable  colonies  in  Canada.  It  may  be  well  con- 
trasted with  the  methods  adopted  later  to  secure  the  control  of 
Acadia. 

472 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

2.  That  the  Assembly  should  be  Triennial  instead  of 
Annual. 

I  have  been  induc'd  to  propose  this  Alteration  from  the 
Experience  I  have  had  of  the  inconvenience  occasion'd  to 
his  Majesty's  Government  in  the  Province  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Bay  by  annual  Elections  of  Members  to  serve  in  the 
Assembly ;  it  being  a  general  Observation  that  the  Assembly 
at  the  latter  end  of  the  Year  endeavour  to  distinguish  them- 
selves by  their  Opposition,  and  moving  some  popular  Points 
in  order  to  recommend  themselves  to  their  Constituents, 
and  secure  their  Elections  for  the  ensuing  Year,  which 
(among  other  Inconveniences)  is  wholly  owing  to  the  fre- 
quency of  their  Elections. 

3.  The  Governour  to  have  Power  to  suspend  the  Lieu- 
tenant Governour  and  any  of  the  Councellors  (not  exceeding 
a  limited  number)  at  any  time,  transmitting  his  Reasons  to 
his  Majesty  for  such  Suspension  ;  also  to  remove  any  Judges, 
Justices  of  the  Peace,  Sheriffs  or  other  Officers,  which  are 
nominated  and  appointed  by  him  with  the  advice  and  Con- 
sent of  the  Council ;  at  any  time  after  their  appointment  by 
a  Writ  of  Supersedeas  or  otherwise  without  the  Advice  and 
consent  of  the  Council ;  which  is  now  a  disputed  Point  in  the 
Province  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay. 

No  special  Reason  need  be  assign'd  for  this. 

4.  That  the  number  of  Representatives  shall  be  limited 
in  the  Charter,  as  well  as  that  of  the  Councellors,  so  as  not 
to  exceed  the  just  Proportion  to  that  of  the  Council ;  for  want 
of  doing  which  in  the  Charter  of  the  Massachusetts  bay,  the 
balance  between  those  two  Branches  of  the  Legislature 
there  has  been  in  some  measure  destroy'd.  As  to  the  proper 
method  of  doing  this,  whether  by  allotting  every  County 
that  shall  be  erected  within  the  Province,  a  certain  number 
of  Representatives  to  be  chosen  by  a  majority  of  the  Electors 
within  it,  but  not  above  a  determinate  number  of  members  to 
be  chosen  out  of  any  one  Town,  and  no  Town  which  has  not 
40  Families  tax'd  to  the  publick  rates  in  it,  to  be  capable 

473 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

of  having  any  of  its  Inhabitants  Elected ;  but  yet  all  the 
Inhabitants  of  every  Town,  though  the  number  of  their  Fam- 
ilies is  less  than  40,  should  be  admitted  to  vote  for  the  Rep- 
resentatives of  the  County,  or  by  any  other  particular 
scheme  for  the  Representing  of  the  several  Towns  in  the 
Assembly  in  as  equal  a  manner  as  may  be,  I  will  not  pre- 
sume to  take  upon  me  to  say.  By  the  Charter  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts bay  it  is  left  to  the  General  Court  or  Assembly  to 
direct  and  declare  what  number  each  County  Town  and  place 
shall  choose ;  and  what  is  chiefly  propos'd  here  is,  that  the 
proportion  settled  in  the  Charter  between  the  Council  and 
House  of  Representatives  should  not  be  exceeded,  without 
his  Majesty's  Approbation  first  had ;  and  that  his  Majesty 
should  have  a  Right,  in  such  case,  to  Augment  the  number 
of  Councellors,  as  he  shall  think  proper. 

No  farther  reason  need  be  Assign'd,  than  what  is  already 
given  for  this  Alteration. 

5.  That  the  liberty  of  conscience  in  Religious  worship 
should  be  extended  to  the  Papists  among  the  present  French 
inhabitants  for  such  definite  time,  as  his  Majesty  shall  be 
pleas'd  to  determine,  after  which  all  Papists  to  have  the 
same  Disqualifications  and  Incapacities,  as  they  have  in 
England. 

The  circumstances  of  the  French  inhabitants  being  rep- 
resented before,  no  special  reason  need  be  given  for  this 
alteration. 

6.  That  his  Majesty  should  have  a  Right  to  incorporate 
any  Town  in  such  manner,  as  he  pleases,  any  Law  of  the 
Province  for  granting  the  several  Towns  any  privileges  or 
Liberties  notwithstanding. 

Experience  of  the  bad  Influence,  which  the  mobbish  fac- 
tious Spirit  of  the  Town  of  Boston  occasion'd  by  all  points 
being  carried  by  the  Populace  at  their  Town  meetings,  have 
ever  had  upon  the  other  Towns  in  the  government  and  upon 
their  own  Members  which  are  generally  leading  men  in  the 
Assembly,  is  the  reason  of  this  Alteration  being  propos'd. 

7.  His  Majesty  to  reserve  to  himself  the  appointment  of 
the  Chief  Justice  of  the  Province,  and  the  Attorney  General, 

474 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

besides  those  of  the  Governour,  Lieut  Governour,  and  Sec- 
retary mentioned  in  the  Charter  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay. 

No  special  reason  need  be  assign'd ;  the  Chief  Justice,  and 
Attorney  General  being  principal  Officers  of  the  Executive 
part  of  Government. 

8.  That  the  Judges  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Judicature, 
which  shall  be  erected  by  the  General  Assembly,  shall  have 
the  same  Power  and  Authority  to  hear  and  determine  all 
matters  in  Equity,  which  the  Judges  of  his  Majesty's  Court 
of  Exchequer  have  in  England. 

The  Assemblies  of  the  Northern  Colonies  seem  to  have  an 
aversion  to  erecting  Courts  of  Equity  and  are  fond  of  taking 
the  administration  of  that  part  of  Justice  into  their  own 
hands,  which  frequently  occasions  great  Irregularities,  and 
Incroachments  upon  the  Courts  of.  Judicature,  and  a  bad 
administration  of  Justice ;  to  prevent  which  this  Alteration 
is  propos'd,  and  as  it  seems  a  better  expedient  than  for  the 
Governours  to  act  as  Chancellors. 

9.  The  Governour  and  Council  to  have  Cognizance  of  all 
Controversies  concerning  Marriage  and  Divorce  with  the 
Incidents  thereunto. 

No  special  Reason  need  be  assign'd  for  this. 

10.  That  appeals  in  all  cases  deserving  the  same  shall  be 
allow'd  from  the  Judgment  or  Sentence  of  the  Courts  of 
Judicature,  where  the  last  trial  is  had,  to  his  Majesty  in  his 
Privy  Council ;  and  that  an  appeal  to  his  Majesty  in  Council 
may  of  common  Right  be  demanded  in  any  case  whatever, 
whether  real,  personal  or  mixt,  which  shall  exceed  the  value 
of  three  hundred  pounds  Sterling,  and  that  in  all  cases  upon 
either  party's  desiring  that  Evidences  may  be  taken  in  writ- 
ing in  order  to  be  produc'd  upon  the  hearing  of  an  appeal 
before  his  Majesty  in  Council,  the  Court  where  any  Case 
is  last  Try'd,  shall  order  the  same  accordingly 

The  Reason  of  this  is  that  for  want  of  this  Proviso's  being 
so  fully  express'd  in  the  Massachusetts  Charter,  as  it  might 
be,  the  Provincial  Courts  of  Judicature  dispute  his  Majesty's 
Right  to  hear  Appeals  in  Real  actions  ;  and,  wholly  to  elude 
that  Clause  in  the  Charter,  will  not  oblige  the  Parties  to  give 

47S 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

their  Evidences  in  writing,  that  for  want  of  them  his  Majesty 
in  Council  may  be  at  a  loss  to  proceed  upon  hearing  appeals, 
which  is  a  grievance  in  many  cases  to  the  Subject  as  well  as 
derogatory  of  his  Majesty's  Right. 

11.  That  besides  the  Reservation  to  be  made  of  all  Trees 
of  the  Diameter  of  24  inches  and  upwards  at  12  inches  from 
the  ground  for  the  service  of  his  Majesty's  Royal  Navy, 
there  be  a  Reservation  made  in  all  Grants  of  Land  hereafter 
to  be  made  by  the  Governour  and  Council,  or  others  whom 
his  Majesty  shall  intrust  with  that  Power,  of  all  Trees  which 
shall  be  of  that  Dimension  at  the  time  of  making  the  Grants. 

The  Reason  of  this  is  Evident  and  the  want  of  it  seems  an 
omission  in  the  Massachusetts  Charter. 

12.  Whereas  there  are  at  present  no  Inhabitants  within 
this  province  capable  of  receiving  the  abovementioned  form 
of  Government,  or  having  Justice  administered  among  'em 
by  the  Courts  of  Judicature,  according  to  the  English  Con- 
stitution ;  It  is  humbly  propos'd  that  a  proviso  shall  be 
added  in  the  Charter,  that  until  the  French  Inhabitants  are 
acquainted  in  some  Degree  with  the  English  Language, 
Customs  and  Governmt  and  are  qualify'd  for  serving  upon 
Juries  or  in  the  Assembly,  and  other  posts,  and  a  sufficient 
number  of  his  Majesty's  English  Subjects  for  carrying  on  a 
Civil  Governmt,  according  to  the  plan  before  propos'd,  are 
settled  in  the  same,  the  Governour  and  Council  shall  be  in- 
vested with  the  power  of  making  Statutes  and  Ordinances 
adapted  to  the  circumstances  of  the  province  for  the  Order- 
ing and  Governing  the  French  Inhabitants  and  new  Settlers, 
whilst  they  are  gathering ;  and  for  the  Dispensation  of  Jus- 
tice among  'em  in  a  summary  way  by  their  Deputies  or  other 
Officers,  to  be  chosen  by  themselves  and  return'd  to  the 
Governour  and  Council  for  their  Approbation,  upon  all  small 
breaches  of  the  Peace,  Petit  Larcenies,  and  other  slight 
Criminal  matters ;  as  also  in  all  civil  causes  where  the  cause 
of  action  does  not  exceed  the  Value  of  forty  shillings  Sterling, 
with  appeals  to  be  allowed  to  the  Chief  Justice,  who  should 
go  the  Circuit  through  the  several  Districts  of  Annapolis  and 
Minas  twice  in  every  year,  and  the  District  of  Schiegnecto 

476 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

once,  to  hear  and  determine  in  a  summary  manner,  without 
a  Jury,  all  causes  that  shall  be  brought  before  him,  either 
Criminal  or  Civil ;  the  former  to  be  presented  either  by 
12  Jurors  in  the  manner  of  an  English  Grand  Jury,  who  shall 
be  charg'd  by  the  Chief  Justice  to  enquire  into  all  offences 
&ca  and  assisted  in  it  by  the  King's  Attorney  General  or 
other  proper  Officer,  or,  in  Default  of  such  presentment,  by 
an  Informer  in  open  Court  and  try'd  instanter ;  for  the  direct- 
ing and  ordering  the  manner  of  which  some  ordinances  might 
be  forthwith  compil'd  for  his  Majesty's  Royal  Approbation, 
which  might  likewise  serve  for  the  Administration  of  his  Gov- 
ernmt  among  the  English  and  other  new  SetUers  'till  a  Body 
of  'em  was  gather'd  together ;  out  of  whom  as  also  the  French 
Inhabitants  Assemblies  and  Juries  might  be  form'd,  and  all 
Officers  proper  for  carrying  on  the  beforementioned  plan  of 
Governmt  appointed ;  which  might  be  suppos'd  at  the  end 
of  ten  years  or  sooner ;  and  then  this  temporary  form  to 
cease,  and  that  propos'd  in  the  Charter  to  take  place ;  of 
which  an  immediate  assurance  seems  necessary  to  be  given 
by  his  Majesty's  granting  of  the  Charter  for  the  Encouragemt 
of  new  Settlers  to  transplant  themselves  into  the  Country. 

The  Reason  of  this  proposal  for  a  temporary  form  of  Gov- 
ernmt seems  evidently  to  appear  from  the  necessity  of  some 
such  Scheme's  being  fram'd  under  the  present  circumstances 
of  the  Province;  the  successfull  Execution  of  which,  after 
it  is  perfected  as  much  as  may  be  in  a  general  plan,  will 
greatly  depend  upon  the  prudence  of  the  Governour  and 
Council,  their  knowledge  of  the  circumstances  and  temper 
of  the  People,  and  the  Opinion  the  Inhabitants  and  Settlers 
shall  have  of  the  Governour;  as  also  of  the  Chief  Justice 
who  will  be  a  very  principal  Officer  in  this  case. 

All  which  is  humbly  submitted  in  obedience  to  his  Maj- 
esty's Commands  by 

William  Shirley. 

Endorsed: 

In  Govr  Shirley's  of  i8  of  Febry  1748. 

477 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE  DUKE  OF  BEDFORD  ^ 

Boston,  New  Engld.  April  24th,  1749. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Having  communicated  by  my  Message  to  the  Houses  of 
the  General  Assembly  the  Intelligence  I  had  receiv'd  of  the 
Scheme  of  the  French  to  settle  the  Country  round  about 
their  Fort  at  Crown  Point,  they  sent  me  at  the  Close  of  the 
session  a  message  in  answer,  which  I  thought  it  my  Duty  to 
inclose  a  copy  of  to  your  Grace,  as  what  would  best  convey 
the  Sense  they  have,  (which  is  I  believe,  the  same  the  other 
Colonies  in  New  England,  and  in  their  neighbourhood  like- 
wise have)  of  the  present  situation  of  affairs  on  this  Conti- 
nent, with  regard  to  their  Security  against  the  French,  and 
the  particular  Incroachments  now  making  by  'em.^ 

As  to  my  own  sentiments  upon  the  French  incroachments 
at  Crown  Point,  with  the  Necessity  of  building  and  garrison- 
ing a  strong  fort  there,  if  the  French  are  to  keep  their  fort, 
and  settle  the  Country  round  it,  and  the  expos'd  condition, 
his  Majesty's  Colonies  will  be  in  to  the  Eastward  'till  Nova 
Scotia  shall  be  fortify'd  and  settled,  I  have  taken  the  liberty 
so  particularly  to  offer  'em  to  your  Grace  in  the  letter,  which 
I  had  the  honour  to  write  to  your  Grace  of  the  i8th  of  Feby, 
and  the  others  referr'd  to  in  it,  that  it  would  be  giving  your 
Grace  needless  Trouble  to  repeat  'em,  or  add  to  'em  here, 
except  in  general  that  I  am  fully  perswaded,  the  Preserva- 
tion of  all  his  Majesty's  Colonies  in  North  America  to  the 
Crown  of  Great  Britain  will  finally  depend  upon  keeping 
Nova  Scotia  out  of  the  possession  of  the  French,  which  whilst 
that  is  done  will  make  Canada  and  Cape  Breton  not  an  hun- 
dredth part  of  the  consequences  to  'em,  as  they  would  be, 
if  they  were  Masters  of  Nova  Scotia  ;  and  will  keep  it  in  the 
power  of  his  Majesty  to  make  a  Conquest  of  both  these 
Places,  when  it  shall  be  thought  proper  to  reduce  'em :   and 

1  Original,  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  45,  p.  150. 

^  An  abstract  of  this  message  is  printed  on  p.  480  following  this 
letter.     See  also  Shirley  to  Hamilton,  ante,  p.  468. 

478 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

that  the  preservation  of  Nova  Scotia  will  depend  upon  it's 
being  secur'd  timely  against  any  sudden  attempt  of  the 
French,  which  must  be  expected  to  be  made  with  their  ut- 
most force  (prepar'd  probably  by  degrees  for  that  pur- 
pose) from  Canada  and  Louisbourg,  upon  their  first  Deter- 
mination to  come  to  a  Rupture  with  us. 

As  to  that  part  of  the  inclos'd  Message,  which  desires  me 
to  represent  to  his  Majesty  "the  Necessity  that  some  strong 
Fortress  should  be  erected  and  maintain'd  by  his  Majesty 
as  near  as  may  be  to  Crown  Point,"  I  can  comply  with  it  so 
far,  as  to  represent  the  Necessity  of  such  a  fort's  being  erected 
by  his  Majesty  and  garrison'd  by  him,  and  remaining  under 
his  immediate  direction.  Orders  and  Appointment ;  but  though 
I  would  not  suggest  any  thing  to  forclose  his  Majesty's 
favour  to  'em  in  other  parts  of  their  Request,  I  can't  comply 
with  it  so  far,  as  to  say  I  think  it  necessary,  that  it  should  be 
maintain'd  at  his  Majesty's  expence  ;  for  I  think  it  as  reason- 
able that  it  should  be  maintain'd  at  the  joint  charge  of  all 
the  Colonies,  except  Nova  Scotia  and  Newfoundland,  as 
that  the  Fortifications  at  Portsmouth,  or  any  Inland  For- 
tress erected  for  the  Defence  of  his  Majesty's  Subjects  within 
the  Realm  of  England,  should  be  maintain'd  at  the  Expence 
of  his  Subjects  in  England  :  The  Circumstances  of  his  Sub- 
jects in  his  Colonies  upon  this  Continent  are  now  such,  that 
making  'em  contribute  so  much  towards  their  common  Secur- 
ity against  the  Enemy,  could  not  reasonably  bethought  laying 
the  least  Burthen  upon  'em :  And  I  think.  My  Lord,  this 
Request  of  the  Assembly  of  this  Province  seems  evidently 
to  demonstrate  the  Necessity  of  his  Majesty's  erecting  and 
garrisoning  such  a  Fortress,  as  they  desire,  under  the  Direc- 
tions of  his  own  Engineers  and  the  Command  of  Officers  to 
be  immediately  appointed  by  himself,  the  Soldiers  likewise 
to  be  paid  by  him ;  but  that  a  Tax  for  the  Maintenance  for 
it  should  be  lay'd  by  Parliament  upon  the  Colonies  in  such 
proportion,  as  his  Majesty  shall  think  fit,  without  which  it 
will  not  be  done ;  And  the  reasonableness  of  doing  this  for 
the  common  Protection  of  the  Inhabitants  against  their  Ene- 
mies, and  the  Security  of  his  Majesty's  Government  among 

479 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

'em,  seems  to  be  as  clear  a  point  as  the  Reasonableness  of  the 
Parliament's  making  Acts  for  securing  the  Benefit  of  the 
Trade  of  the  Colonies  to  their  Mother  Country,  and  creating 
a  Dependency  of  'em  upon  her;  and  even  of  laying  Taxes 
upon  the  Importation  of  foreign  Mollasses,  Rum,  and  Sugars 
in  favour  of  the  British  Sugar  Colonies. 

I  am  with  the  most  Dutifull  Regard, 

My  Lord  Duke, 
Your  Grace's  most  Devoted,  and  most 
Obedient  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Bedford. 

Endorsed: 

Boston,  Apr.  24,  1749. 
Govr  Shirley 

5  loth  June. 


MASSACHUSETTS  GENERAL  COURT,  REPORT  ON 
FRENCH  ENCROACHMENTS! 

In  Council  and  in  the  House  of  Represen- 
tatives on  April  18,  1749,  the  following 
Report  was  ordered  to  be  accepted  as  an 
Answer  to  Govr.  Shirley's  Message  of  the 
6th  Instant. 

The  two  Houses  share  his  Excellency's  apprehensions  of 
the  French  incroachments  at  Crown  Point,  and  think  It  wise 
that  the  neighbouring  Governments  have  been  informed  of 
this  common  Danger.  They  beg  his  Excellency  to  repre- 
sent to  the  King  how  necessary  it  is  that  some  strong  Fortress 
should  be  erected  and  maintained  by  his  Majesty  as  near  as 
may  be  to  Crown  Point  Fort,  to  prevent  further  French 
incroachments  in  time  of  peace,  and  to  cover  any  Settle- 

^  This  report  is  the  abstract  of  the  message  referred  to  on  p.  478. 
It  is  condensed  from  the  original  in  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  45,  p.  151. 

480 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ments  which  may  be  made  hereafter  on  the  lands  in  those 
parts  belonging  to  the  Crown.  The  danger  on  the  Westward 
is  greater  because  of  our  exposed  State  to  the  Eastward  upon 
giving  up  Cape  Breton  to  the  French.  The  whole  of  Nova 
Scotia  is  in  the  French  interest,  except  a  small  part  of  the 
Garrison  of  Annapolis.  They  wish  a  strong  fort  to  be  also 
built  at  Chibucto,  or  somewhere  near  Louisbourg. 

The  two  Houses  have  considered  the  Application  of  the 
Eastern  Indians  for  peace,  and  are  glad  the  Treaty  is  pro- 
posed to  be  at  Boston.  They  do  not  like  the  Treaty  to  be 
at  the  Eastward,  when  it  has  been  so,  it  has  always  cost 
them  much  expense.  On  this  occasion  however  it  is  too  late 
for  the  two  Houses  to  be  more  particular. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   MARQUIS   LA 
GALISSONIERE  ^ 

Boston,  May  9,  1749. 
Sir, 

Two  days  ago  I  receiv'd  from  Mr  Mascarene  a  Copy  of 
your  Letter  to  him,  dated  at  Quebec  15th  January,  wherein 
(among  other  Demands)  you  call  upon  him  to  acquaint  you, 
whether  he  intends  to  comprehend  the  Abenaqui  Indians  in 
the  Peace,  without  requiring  any  kind  of  submission  from 
'em ;  and  desire  that  in  such  case  he  would  engage  me  to  let 
'em  resettle  in  their  Village,  and  their  Missionaries  remain 
there  with  'em  unmolested,  as  they  did  before  the  War : 
observing  to  him  that  those  Indians  enter'd  into  the  War 
only  as  your  Allies  and  therefore  when  the  War  was  finished 
with  you,  it  ought  to  be  so  with  regard  to  them ;  and  you 
proceed  to  say,  Sir,  that  if  they  thought  otherwise  in  New 
England,  you  shall  be  Obliged  to  Assist  those  Indians,  in- 
timating that  it  is  of  importance  to  the  safety  and  Tran- 
quillity of  the  Frontiers  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  that  you 
should  have  a  speedy  and  Positive  Answer,  and  that  you  shall 

^  P.  R.  O.,  C.  O.  5,  13,  p.  273.     Another  copy  is  in  C.  0.  5,  886, 
and  a  transcript  is  in  the  Library  of  Congress. 
VOL.  I  —  21  481 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

not  be  surprlz'd  if  the  Indians  should  proceed  to  Acts  of 
Violence. 

To  this,  Sir,  which  is  the  fourth  Demand  in  your  letter, 
Mr  Mascarene  having  referr'd  you  to  me  upon  it,  I  shall 
comply  with  your  request  in  giving  as  speedy  and  Positive 
an  Answer  as  may  be. 

The  Village  of  the  Abenaqui  Indians,  by  which  I  at  present 
understand  only  those  who  are  seated  on  St  Johns  River,  has 
been  ever  deem'd  by  the  English  to  be  situated  within  the 
heart  of  Nova  Scotia,  and  consequently  that  Tribe  of  In- 
dians, together  with  the  French  Inhabitants  upon  the  same 
River  to  be  resident  within  His  Majesty's  Territories  ;  and  ac- 
cordingly. Sir,  the  latter  have  acknowledged  themselves,  ever 
since  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht,  to  be  Subjects  of  the  Crown  of 
Great  Britain,  by  taking  the  Oaths  of  Fidelity  and  Allegiance 
to  it  and  have  had  the  protection  of  His  Majesty's  Govern- 
ment in  common  with  his  other  Subjects  in  that  Province. 
This  being  the  case,  these  Indians,  when  the  advice  of  a 
rupture  between  His  Majesty  and  the  King  your  master  was 
hourly  expected,  under  the  pretext  of  sending  a  Deputation 
to  Mr  Mascarene  to  desire  that  they  might  remain  in  Peace 
and  Amity  with  the  English,  notwithstanding  war  should 
happen  between  the  two  Crowns,  gain'd  admission  into  An- 
napolis Royal  for  some  of  their  Tribe,  who  were  in  reality  (as 
it  afterwards  prov'd)  spies ;  and  having  obtain'd  Mr  Mas- 
carene's  agreement  to  what  they  pretended  to  propose  in 
behalf  of  their  Tribe,  and  being  honourably  treated  and 
dismiss'd  by  him,  return'd  in  three  Weeks  after  among  others 
of  their  Tribe,  with  their  Missionary  De  Loutre  at  their  head, 
surpriz'd  and  killed  as  many  of  the  English  at  Annapolis 
Royal  as  they  caught  without  the  fort,  destroyed  their  cattle, 
burn'd  their  houses,  and  continued  their  Acts  of  Hostility 
against  the  Garrison,  'till  the  arrival  of  two  of  the  four  first 
Companies  I  sent  from  New  England  for  the  Reinforcement 
of  it.  Such  was  the  entrance  of  these  Indians,  Sir,  into  the 
War  with  us  and  their  Alliance  with  you. 

For  this  perfidious  behaviour  I  caus'd  War  to  be  Declar'd 
in  His  Majesty's  name  against  these  Indians,  at  Boston,  in 

482 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

November  1744,  and,  so  far  as  it  depends  on  me,  they  shall 
not  be  admitted.  Sir,  to  Terms  of  Peace,  till  they  have  made 
a  proper  submission  for  their  Treachery,  unless  they  should 
be  already  comprehended  in  the  Definitive  Treaty  of  Peace 
and  Friendship  lately  concluded  at  Aix  la  Chapelle ;  which 
I  shall  on  my  part  strictly  observe  in  every  Point. 

As  to  what  you  have  thought  fit.  Sir,  to  declare  in  your 
letter  concerning  your  intentions  to  support  the  Indians  in 
Acts  of  Hostility  against  us,  unless  we  give  'em  Peace  upon 
the  Terms  there  prescribed  by  you,  and  the  danger  the 
Frontiers  of  the  Massachusetts  bay  in  particular  may  be  in, 
unless  you  have  a  speedy  and  positive  answer  upon  this  head  : 
what  I  have  to  say  in  Answer  is,  that  I  shall  be  sorry  for  a 
new  Rupture  between  us,  and  am  very  desirous  to  have 
perfect  tranquillity  restored  to  the  province  under  my  Gov- 
ernment ;  but  if  the  latter  is  not  to  be  the  case  and  you  think 
fit  to  make  yourself  a  party  in  an  Indian  War  against  us ;  I 
doubt  not  but  his  Majesty's  Subjects  upon  this  continent 
will  be  able  to  make  just  Reprizals  upon  Canada,  when  it 
shall  be  his  Majesty's  Pleasure  to  have  'em  do  it. 

I  can't  avoid  now.  Sir,  expressing  great  surprize  at  the  other 
parts  of  your  letter  whereby  you  take  upon  you  to  call  Mr 
Mascarene  to  account  for  expelling  the  Missionary  from 
Minas,  for  being  guilty  of  such  treasonable  practices  within 
his  Majesty's  government  as  merited  a  much  severer  punish- 
ment than  that  of  Expulsion  from  the  Province. 

The  Right  you  claim.  Sir,  of  sending  Missionaries  from 
France  to  reside  among  his  Majesty's  Subjects  of  Nova  Scotia 
as  their  Priests,  and  in  consequence  of  that,  your  forbidding 
His  Majesty's  Governour  to  make  any  alteration  in  the  State 
of  Religion  and  it's  Ministers  there,  is  still  more  extraor- 
dinary ;  and  I  must  not  omit  upon  this  occasion  to  remark 
to  you  that  I  think  the  letter  which  the  Bishop  of  Quebec  ^ 

'  Right  Rev.  Henri  du  Breil  de  Pont  Briand,  successor  of  Bishop 
de  I'Auberiviere,  and  sixth  Bishop  of  Quebec,  was  born  at 
Vannes  in  Brittany,  France,  in  1709.  He  was  consecrated  at 
Paris  on  the  9th  of  April,  1 741,  and  arrived  at  Quebec  on  the  17th 
of  August  following.     On  the  approach  of  the  English  to  Quebec, 

483 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

lately  wrote  to  Mr  Mascarene  concerning  his  intended  Visi- 
tation of  his  Majesty's  Subjects  in  that  Government,  in  such 
terms,  as  shew'd  he  looks  upon  'em  as  a  part  of  his  care- of 
souls,  and  within  his  Jurisdiction,  was  likewise  an  extraor- 
dinary attempt  and  can't  be  admitted. 

Your  interfering.  Sir,  in  His  Majesty's  punishment  of  his 
Subjects  in  Nova  Scotia,  inflicted  for  Rebellious  and  Trea- 
sonable Practices  against  the  Crown,  and  his  requiring  others 
of  them  to  Renew  their  Oaths  of  Fidelity,  and  in  one  word 
your  treating  the  Subjects  of  the  Crown  of  Great  Britain 
in  that  Province,  as  if  you  look'd  upon  'em  as  subjects  of 
his  most  christian  Majesty  and  being  under  his  Allegiance, 
is,  if  possible,  still  more  surprizing ;  and  as  these  attempts 
are  manifest  invasions  of  the  undoubted  Right  which  every 
Prince  has  over  his  Subjects,  I  can't  but  look  upon  'em  as 
Insults  upon  his  Majesty's  government,  which  require  no 
further  Answer. 

After  these  attempts.  Sir,  upon  his  Majesty's  right  of  Gov- 
ernment over  his  Subjects  in  Nova  Scotia,  I  am  less  surpriz'd 
at  your  Encroachments  upon  the  limits  of  his  Province, 
which  you  are  pleas'd  to  call  in  your  letter  Dependencies  of 
the  Government  of  Canada. 

As  to  your  Demand  for  the  Release  of  the  two  Indians 
carry'd  off  by  Capt.  Gorham,  I  can't  allow,  Sir,  that  you 
have  a  right  to  interpose  in  that  Affair,  and  Mr  Gorham  has 
satisfy'd  me  that  he  committed  no  breach  of  Publick  faith  in 
doing  it. 

I  can't  conclude  without  making  use  of  this  Opportunity 
to  acquaint  you,  Sir,  that  we  look  upon  Fort  St  Frederic  at 
Crown  Point  as  an  Encroachment  upon  his  Majesty's  Ter- 
ritories, and  in  case  you  proceed  to  settle  the  Country  round 
it,  shall  esteem  those  settlements  so  too,  unless  that  tract 

in  1759,  he  issued  a  Pastoral  Letter,  which  is  preserved  in  Knox's 
"Historical  Journal,"  II,  108,  and  reprinted  in  Smith's  "History 
of  Canada,"  I,  277;  and  after  the  reduction  of  that  city  retired 
to  Montreal,  where  he  died  on  the  8th  of  June,  1760,  aged  51 
years.  He  was  the  last  Bishop  of  Canada  under  the  French 
dominion. 

484 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

has  been  ceded  to  you  by  the  late  Definitive  Treaty  at  Aix 
la  Chapelle. 

I  am  sorry,  Sir,  that  the  first  fruits  of  Peace,  on  Your  part 
have  so  unpromising  an  Aspect,  and  beg  You  will  be  per- 
swaded  that  nothing  shall  be  wanting  in  me  to  preserve  that 
right  understanding,  which  subsisted  between  us  during  the 
War,  having  the  honour  to  be  with  the  most  perfect  regard 
Sir, 

Your  most  humble,  and 

most  Obedient  Servant 
Marquis  la  Galissoniere. 

W.  Shirley. 


WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE  DUKE  OF  BEDFORD  i 

Boston,  May  loth,  1749. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Mr  Mascarene  having  transmitted  to  me  a  copy  of  the 
French  Governour  of  Canada's  letter  to  him  dated  the  15th 
January  with  a  copy  of  his  own  Answer  to  it,  wherein  he 
refers  him  to  me  for  an  Answer  to  his  fourth  demand,  I 
thought  it  my  duty  not  only  to  Answer  that  part  of  the  letter 
but  to  remark  upon  the  other  parts  of  it,  which  I  apprehended 
Mr  Mascarene  had  too  slightly  touch'd  upon  in  his  Answer ; 
and  I  now  inclose  your  Grace  a  copy  of  my  Answer ;  but  as 
Mr  Mascarene  informs  me  in  his  letter  to  me,  that  he  has 
sent  Your  Grace  a  copy  of  Mr  la  Galissoniere's  letter  and  his 
Answer,  I  thought  it  needless  for  me  to  transmit  your  Grace 
copies  of  them,  and  beg  leave  to  referr  Your  Grace  to  those 
already  sent  by  Mr  Mascarene. 

It  is  necessary  for  me  to  observe  to  Your  Grace  that  this 
is  the  first  Instance  of  a  French  Governour's  openly  avowing 
the  part  of  any  Indian  Tribe  at  War  with  us,  and  declaring 

^Original,  L.  S.  with  auto-postscript,  P.  R.  0.,  C.  O.  5,  13,  p.  261, 
A  copy  is  in  CO.  5,  901,  244,  and  a  transcript  is  in  the  Library  of 
Congress.     A  duplicate  to  the  Lords  of  Trade  is  in  C.  O.  5,  886. 

48s 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

that  he  will  support  'em  in  Acts  of  Hostility  against  us,  and 
whether  Mr  la  Galissoniere  would  now  venture  to  do  it 
without  Particular  Instructions  from  his  master  to  keep  the 
Indians  at  War  with  us,  I  will  not  take  upon  me  to  say ;  and 
it  is  proper  farther  to  observe  that  upon  the  conclusion 
of  a  French  Warr,  we  have  never  look'd  upon  the  Indians 
engaged  in  it  against  us  to  be  included  in  the  general 
Treaty  made  in  Europe  between  the  two  Crowns ;  But 
the  King's  Governours  have  ever  made  particular  Treaties 
with  'em. 

As  to  Mr  la  Gallissoniere's  letter,  I  think  I  need  not  trouble 
Your  Grace  with  any  comment  upon  it  here,  farther  than 
to  observe  that  it  seems  to  shew  the  necessity  of  having  the 
boundaries  between  the  limits  of  Canada  and  those  of  His 
Majesty's  territories  in  North  America  bordering  upon  it, 
settled  ;  that  it  plainly  appears  the  French  are  determined  to 
obstruct  His  Majesty's  settlement  of  Nova  Scotia  as  much 
as  possible,  especially  in  Minas  and  Schiegnecto,  which  are 
districts  absolutely  necessary  to  be  secur'd,  and  that  the 
making  English  Settlements  there,  will  be  no  slight  work 
nor  be  held  when  effected,  without  a  regular  Fort  strongly 
garrisson'd  upon  the  Isthmus  between  Bay  Verte  and  Beau- 
bassin ;  and  that  I  can't  but  look  upon  the  point  now  com- 
ing on  in  Dispute,  as  what  must  finally  determine  the  Mas- 
tery of  this  Continent  between  His  Majesty  and  the  French 
King. 

If  I  had  receiv'd  His  Majesty's  leave  of  Absence  from  my 
government,  I  should  have  taken  the  first  Opportunity  of 
coming  to  England,  as  I  apprehend  my  being  there  for  a  short 
time  might  be  of  some  Service  upon  this  Occasion. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  with  the  most  Dutiful  Regard 
My  Lord  Duke 

Your  Grace's  most  Devoted 

and  most  Obedient  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 

P.S.  Not  knowing  whether  Mr  Mascarene  has  trans- 
mitted    Duplicates    of    Mr    la    Galissoniere's     letter    and 

486 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

his  answer,  to  Your  Grace,  I  thought  it  proper  to  inclose 

Your  Grace's  most  Devoted  Servant 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Bedford.  W.  Shirley.^ 


GEORGE    CLINTON   TO   WILLIAM    SHIRLEY  ^ 

Fort  George  in  New  York,  19th  May,  1749. 
Sir, 

Your  Excellency  will  perceive  from  the  enclosed  Extracts 
of  Colo.  Johnson's  Letter  to  me,  and  of  a  Paper  which  the 
Governor  of  Canada  had  sent  among  the  Indians  what  Arti- 
fices he  is  using  now  at  the  Commencement  of  the  Peace  to 
infuse  Jealousies  among  them  of  the  English,  and  to  with- 
draw their  Affections  from  us.  I  have  ordered  Our  Inter- 
preter to  go  to  Oswego  with  Presents  and  Instructions  not 
only  to  guard  against  the  Artifices  of  the  French,  and  to 
confirm  the  five  Nations  in  their  Fidelity  to  the  Crown  of 
Great  Britain,  but  likewise  to  fix  the  Misissaques  and  other 
Nations  to  the  Westward  in  their  late  Alliance  with  us, 
which  may  be  of  the  greatest  Service  to  the  British  Colonies 
in  case  of  any  future  War  with  France,  and  also  in  the 
British  Commerce  with  all  the  Indian  Nations  to  the 
Westward  and  who  before  this  knew  little  of  the  English, 
while  the  French  have  at  the  same  time  lost  theirs.  We 
ought  not  I  think  to  be  negligent  in  using  all  the  Means  in 
our  power  to  preserve  these  Advantages  which  We  have 
got.  I  shall  be  well  pleased  with  every  Information  or 
Advice  which  your  Excellency  shall  think  proper  to  give  me 
for  this  purpose. 

I  am  with  the  greatest  Regard 
Your  Excellencys 
very  humble  Servt. 

G.  Clinton. 

*  See  Shirley  to  La  Galissoniere,  May  9.  The  correspondence 
between  La  Galissoniere  and  Mascarene  is  printed,  Docts.  rel.  to 
Col.  Hist,  of  N.  Y.  6,  478,  479. 

2  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32818,  82.  A  transcript  is  in 
the  Library  of  Congress. 

487 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

To 

His  Excelly  :  Govt  :  Shirley. 

Endorsed: 

Copy  of  a  Letter  from 
Governor  Clinton  to 
Mr.  Shirley  Govr.  of 
the  Massachusetts  Bay 
dated  New  York,  May 
19th  1749. 
No.  17  in  the  Lords  of  Trade  of  the  26th  July,  1749. 

WILLIAM  SHIRLEY  TO  THE  DUKE  OF  BEDFORD  ^ 

Boston,  June  i8th,  1749. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Having  receiv'd  no  Advice  yet  of  Govr :  Cornwallis  being 
arriv'd  at  Annapolis  Royal  or  upon  any  part  of  the  Coast  of 
Nova  Scotia,  and  thinking  no  opportunity  should  be  lost  of 
my  apprizing  your  Grace  of  the  motions  of  the  French  in 
that  Government  I  inclose  your  Grace  a  Copy  of  Mr.  Mas- 
carene's  Letter  to  me  which  I  receiv'd  late  last  night. 

As  to  my  sending  a  Man  of  Warr  as  Mr.  Mascarene  seems 
to  desire  to  visit  the  Fort  now  erecting  at  the  mouth  of  St. 
John's  River  by  the  French ;  it  is  not  in  my  Power,  His 
Majesty's  Ship  Boston  at  present  station'd  here  being  under 
strict  Orders  from  the  Lords  of  the  Admiralty  to  proceed  to 
England  as  soon  as  she  can  be  fitted  for  the  Sea ;  the  Sloop 
Viper  now  cleaning  here,  being  under  like  Orders  to  proceed 
as  soon  as  may  be  to  Jamaica ;  And  the  America  now  at 
Portsmouth  in  New  Hampshire  being  neither  finish'd  nor 
mann'd.  But  as  Govr.  Cornwallis  will  I  presume  bring  one  or 
more  Ships  of  Warr  with  him,  and  may  be  daily  expected  to 
arrive  in  his  Government,  I  hope  his  Arrival  there  will  soon 
put  a  stop  to  the  motions  of  the  French. 

^  B.  Af .,  Additional  Manuscript  32818,  15.  A  transcript  is  in 
the  Library  of  Congress. 

488 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

The  two  Row  Galleys  mention'd  in  Mr.  Mascarene*s 
letter  are  the  two  Schooners  which  I  reed :  His  Majesty's 
orders  about  two  Years  ago  to  hire  to  attend  the  Man  of  War 
design'd  to  be  station'd  there ;  And  which  as  I  judged  the 
continuance  of  'em  in  His  Majesty's  Service  particularly 
necessary  at  this  Juncture  I  did  not  discharge  with  the 
Troops. 

I  have  the  Honour  to  be  with  the  most  Dutiful!  regard, 
My  Lord  Duke 

Your  Grace's  most  Devoted  and 
most  Obedient  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Bedford. 

Endorsed: 

Copy  of  a  Letter  from  Govr.  Shirley  to 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Bedford, 

dated  Boston,  June  i8th :  1749. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO   SPENCER   PHIPS^ 

Boston,  September  [11,]  1749. 
Sir, 

As  the  Governmt  of  this  Province  will,  upon  my  Embarka- 
tion for  Great  Britain,  devolve  upon  your  Honour,  I  wish 
you  all  the  Success  therein,  and  Ease  and  Comfort  to  yourself 
which  you  can  desire.  And  as  it  is  my  Intention  by  the  Will 
of  God  to  return  back  as  soon  as  my  Business  in  England  is 
finished  ;  I  cannot  but  be  solicitous  that  nothing  should  be 
done  here  in  my  absence  that  may  render  my  Governmt 
uneasy  to  me  upon  my  Return. 

I  know  it  is  reasonable  to  expect  that  some  Offices  both  Civil 
and  Military  will  become  vacant  by  the  death,  and  possibly 

^  Mass.  Arch.,  Col.  Ser.  53,  423.  Spencer  Phips  was  born  June 
6,  1685,  graduated  at  Harvard  College  In  1703,  served  for  eleven 
years  in  the  Council  of  Massachusetts  and  was  Lieutenant  Gov- 
ernor of  the  colony  from  1732  until  his  death,  April  4,  1757. 

489 


eORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

by  the  Resignation,  of  the  Persons  that  now  hold  them ;  And 
in  such  Cases  it  may  be  absolutely  necessary  to  fill  them, 
and  I  doubt  not  but  you  will  among  other  Qualifications 
think  it  necessary  that  the  Persons  nominated  to  them  should 
be  well  affected  to  his  Majesty's  Governmt,  and  that  none 
of  the  contrary  Spirit  should  be  preferr'd ;  And  as  to  any 
vacancies  in  the  Courts  of  Common  Law,  in  Case  there  re- 
main of  the  Judges  a  Quorum,  and  none  of  them  disabled  from 
attending  their  Duty,  there  will  be  no  Necessity  of  having 
the  Vacancy  supplied ;  And  when  there  may  not  remain  a 
quorum,  I  think  it  most  reasonable  that  the  Persons  intended 
to  succeed  should  be  nominated  to  stand  during  your  Hon- 
our's Continuance  in  the  Administration,  and  no  longer  :  which 
rule  I  think  proper  to  be  observed  in  any  Vacancies  in  the 
office  of  Judge  for  the  Probate  of  Wills,  and  Register  of  Wills  ; 
And  I  am  so  well  satisfied  of  your  Justice  and  Prudence,  that 
I  need  not  use  any  Argument  with  you  not  to  have  any  of  the 
present  Officers  removed  but  upon  evident  Misdemeanour; 
and  in  Case  any  Military  Officer  should  be  accused  thereof, 
that  you  will  have  the  matter  heard  before  his  Majesty's 
Council,  and  have  their  Opinion  therein. 

I  must  further  desire  that  you  would  not  go  into  any 
measures  during  my  Absence  for  appointing  an  Agent  for 
the  Province  in  Great  Britain,  unless  the  publick  Affairs  of 
the  Province  should  absolutely  require  it ;  And  in  such  Case 
you  will  not  give  your  Consent  to  the  Appointmt  of  one  for  a 
longer  time  than  'till  my  Return,  and  that  no  Person  that  has 
been  under  Censure  for  Neglect  of  Duty,  or  may  have  shewn 
a  remarkable  Disaffection  to  me,  should  be  put  into  the 
trust :  For  you  must  needs  apprehend  what  extreme  Diffi- 
culties this  may  bring  on  my  Administration  at  my  Return. 
In  this  and  the  other  foregoing  Articles,  I  have  suggested 
nothing  but  what  I  should  think  reasonable  for  me  to  comply 
with  was  I  in  your  Circumstances. 

Another  thing  which  I  would  mention  to  your  Honour  is, 
that  I  apprehend  it  will  be  very  disagreeable  to  his  Majesty 
and  his  Ministers  for  you  to  consent  to  any  Act  that  may 
repeal  or  suspend  the  Execution  of  the  Standing  Act  for 

490 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Fees  made  in  King  William's  Reign ;  there  being  an  Article 
In  my  Instructions  from  his  Majesty  forbidding  my  consent- 
ing to  any  Bill  for  repealing  any  Act  in  force,  without  a  sus- 
pending Clause  that  it  should  not  take  Place  'till  his  Majesty 
has  approv'd  of  it. 

You  will  excuse  me  if  I  am  more  than  ordinary  solicitous 
that  nothing  may  be  done  in  my  Absence  to  hinder  the  Effect 
of  the  Act  for  drawing  in  the  Bills  of  Credit  of  the  several 
Denominations  which  have  at  any  time  been  issued  by  this 
Governmnt,  and  are  still  outstanding,  and  for  ascertaining 
the  Rate  of  coined  Silver  in  this  Province  for  the  future 
upon  which  the  honour  of  the  Governmt  and  the  Prosper- 
ity of  the  Province  do  so  much  depend.  For  besides  his 
Majesty's  express  Instruction  not  to  repeal  any  act  without 
his  Allowance,  It  appears  that  his  Majesty  and  his  Ministers 
have  relied  upon  the  Faith  of  this  Governmt  plighted  in  this 
Act,  that  they  will  use  the  money  granted  by  Parliamt  for 
putting  an  end  to  the  Paper  Currency  in  the  manner  pro- 
vided by  the  Act ;  And  it  seems  as  if  it  were  in  this  Confi- 
dence that  the  money  is  at  last  put  into  the  hands  of  our 
Agents ;  And  further  it  is  evident  how  much  the  British 
Parliament  have  this  matter  at  heart,  by  the  Bill  brought  into 
Parliament  the  last  Session  for  putting  an  end  to  the  same 
Paper  Currency  in  the  other  Colonies  of  New  England  :  And 
in  these  Circumstances  I  look  upon  it  that  a  Commander 
in  Chief  of  this  Province  would  bring  upon  himself  so  much 
of  the  Displeasure  of  the  British  Court  and  Parliament  by 
yielding  to  anything  that  might  destroy  or  weaken  the 
Force  of  the  Act,  that,  so  long  as  I  should  be  in  the  Admin- 
istration of  the  Governmt  I  should  not  dare  to  do  it  on  any 
Consideration  whatsoever. 

I  shall  leave  your  Honour  a  Sett  of  his  Majesty's  Instruc- 
tions to  me,  which  will  be  your  Rule  in  my  Absence  from  the 
Province,  as  they  are  mine  during  my  being  in  it :  And  I  must 
refer  you  to  the  Books  in  the  Secretary's  Office  for  the  Rec- 
ord of  my  Commissions ;  which  will  show  you  your  Power 
and  furnish  you  with  directions  during  your  Administration. 

You  are  not  unacquainted  with  the  General  Court's  making 

491 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

me  a  Grant  for  my  Support,  to  be  paid  out  of  the  next  Supply 
Bill ;  which  is  a  plain  and  absolute  engagement  that  they  will 
in  the  next  Supply  Act  make  Provision  for  it ;  And  there- 
fore I  rely  upon  your  Honour's  Care,  that  if  either  thro'  Mis- 
take or  otherwise  the  Act  should  be  so  framed  as  to  exclude 
my  Grant,  you  might  see  that  the  Faith  of  the  Governmt  be 
not  violated  in  this  Particular. 

I  am.  Sir, 
Your  Honour's  Obedient 
Humble  Servant 

^  .  ,j  ■  W.  Shirley. 

Copy  examm  d 

W.  Shirley. 
JOSIAH  WILLARD  TO  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY » 

Boston,  Decem  ii,  1749. 
Sir, 

Since  my  last  to  your  Excy.  I  have  thought  more  upon  the 
proposal  I  made  for  the  King's  Leave  for  suspending  that 
part  of  the  Act  relating  to  our  money,  which  orders  the  Ex- 
changing of  it  from  the  3  ist  of  March  next,  and  am  still  of  the 
mind  that  if  half  a  year  only  were  allowed  for  the  exchange 
it  would  be  sufficient  and  (it  may  be)  attended  with  less  In- 
convenience than  the  matter  will  be  as  the  Act  now  stands ; 
and  if  there  be  any  prospect  that  the  Parliament  will  this 
Winter  make  provision  to  secure  us  from  any  Loss  that  we 
must  otherwise  sustain  from  the  Bills  of  the  Neighbouring 
Colonies,  I  am  persuaded  that  this  expedient  will  give  a 
general  satisfaction. 

The  Court  has  now  sat  near  three  weeks,  and  have  done 
nothing  of  moment  In  the  public  affairs  of  the  Province 
except  what  you  will  receive  under  this  cover.^     Your  Excy. 

^Autograph  Draft,  Mass.  Arch.,  Col.  Sen,  53,  458.  This  Is 
the  first  of  Willard's  reports  to  Shirley  after  the  arrival  of  the 
latter  In  England. 

*  The  business  referred  to  was  a  provision  for  "  Improving  the 
natural  advantages  of  the  Soil  of  this  Province"  by  appointment 
of  a  committee  which  should  look  into  this  subject,  and  report. 

492 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

will  doubtless  hear  by  other  hands  that  Mr  Pemberton  has 
received  a  commission  from  the  Lieut.  Govr  to  be  Naval 
Officer  in  consequence  of  his  Majesty's  Command  and  by  his 
signet,  according  to  which  he  is  placed  in  that  office  during 
his  Majesty's  pleasure;  Mr  Payne  has  been  with  me  for  a 
copy  of  the  Commission  to  send  to  your  Excy.  but  it  is  not 
yet  put  upon  record  nor  lodged  with  me  for  that  end.  You 
will  please  to  excuse  my  haste 

I  am  with  great  Respect 

P.S.  Dec  19,  1749. 

Sir, 

On  the  latter  end  of  the  last  month  six  Englishmen  in  cold 
blood  murthered  one  Eastern  Indian  and  dangerously  wounded 
two  more.  Five  of  these  men  are  taken  and  there  is  a  Proc- 
lamation for  apprehending  the  other  who  is  supposed  to  be 
the  Ringleader.  I  have  inclosed  the  Proclamation  with  the 
last  Treaty  with  the  Indians. 


,  WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE  OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

St.  James's  Street,  January  23d,  [1749/50]. 

My  Lord  Duke, 

Thinking  this  Method  of  laying  before  your  Grace  what  I 
now  beg  leave  to  offer  to  you,  may  least  trespass  upon  your 
Grace's  time,  I  take  the  liberty  of  using  it. 

The  Question  which,  among  others,  your  Grace  was  pleas'd 
to  ask  me,  when  I  had  last  the  Honour  of  waiting  upon  you, 
vizt  whether  there  were  any  complaints  against  me  from 
my  Government,  has  dwelt  upon  my  Mind  with  some 
Concern. 

When  I  reflect,  my  Lord,  that  for  several  years  before  I 
was  appointed  to  my  Government,  the  people  of  it  had  been 

^  Original,  L.  S.,  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32'/20,  S5-  ^ 
transcript  is  in  the  Library  of  Congress. 

493 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

remarkable  for  quarrelling  with  their  former  Governours, 
and  disputing  his  Majesty's  Instructions,  and  that  I  found 
'em  upon  my  coming  into  the  Chair  embroil'd  in  factions 
among  themselves,  that  throughout  my  whole  Administra- 
tion a  perfect  Harmony  has  ever  subsisted  between  me  and 
the  Assembly ;  that  thro'  the  Influence  I  had  gain'd  over 
'em,  I  have  been  able  to  promote  some  publick  Services, 
the  happy  Effects  of  which  I  hope  the  Nation  may  long  feel ; 
that  there  are  late  Instances  of  my  still  preserving  this  In- 
fluence ;  that  there  never  happen'd  the  least  Quarrell,  111 
Will,  or  Misunderstanding  between  me  and  the  Assembly ; 
that  upon  my  leaving  Boston  they  publickly  express'd  their 
Satisfaction  in  my  Administration,  and  that  I  left  'em  in 
perfect  tranquility  and  well  affected  to  his  Majesty's  Gov- 
ernment; whilst  some  of  the  Neighbouring  Colonies  are 
involv'd  in  Factions  and  the  utmost  Confusion;  —  I  say, 
my  Lord,  when  I  reflect  on  these  things  and  that  they 
are  not  altogether  unknown  to  Your  Grace,  I  can't  but  be 
jealous  that  your  Grace's  Inquiry  proceeded  from  some 
Insinuations,  which  may  have  been  made  to  Your  Grace, 
that  I  have  gone  into  some  imprudent  Measures,  which 
have  begot  a  Disaffection  in  the  People  to  me ;  —  if  so,  I 
beg  leave  to  assure  your  Grace  that  such  Insinuations  are 
false  and  groundless. 

As  to  secret  Practices,  or  open  Clamours  of  particular 
malignant  Persons  who  are  to  be  found,  I  believe,  in  every 
government  where  his  Majesty's  Governour  is  active  in  doing 
his  Duty,  and  as  few  of  'em,  I  am  perswaded,  in  mine,  as 
any  where ;  no  Prudence  can  prevent  'em.  If  any  such 
Clamours  have  reach'd  your  Grace's  Ear  from  some  Mer- 
chant on  this  Side  the  Water,  they  were  not  to  be  avoided  by 
me,  unless  I  had  suffer'd  the  Government  to  go  on  to  pay 
£40,  or  £50,000  Sterling  in  it's  own  Wrong,  without  apprizing 
his  Majesty's  Ministers  of  it;  and  as  these  Clamours  in- 
tirely  sprung  from  my  fidelity  in  the  Execution  of  the  Trusts, 
your  Grace  committed  to  me  by  your  letter  of  the  30th  of 
May  1747,  and  I  have  been  as  tender  of  the  interest  of  these 
gentlemen  in  the  particular  affair  of  their  quarrell  with  me, 

494 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

as  I  could ;  not  to  mention  publick  obligations,  which  I  think 
they  have  as  New  England  Merchants  to  me ;  I  hope  I  may- 
be allow'd  to  say  that  they  are  injurious  and  most  unwar- 
rantable, and  that  they  will  be  consider'd  by  your  Grace  in 
that  light;  as  they  are  at  the  Board  of  Trade,  and  I  per- 
swade  myself,  at  the  Treasury,  where  these  Insinuations  have 
been  likewise  made  and  there  have  been  Opportunities  of 
fully  inquiring  into  'em. 

I  can  at  present  recollect  no  other  Person,  thro'  whom  your 
Grace  may  have  been  lately  troubled  with  any  malevolent 
Insinuations  against  me ;  except  Mr  Waldo,  whom  I  had  in- 
trusted with  the  Payment  of  one  of  the  late  Regiments  rais'd 
in  my  Government  for  the  Expedition  against  Canada,  which 
I  had  put  under  his  Command ;  and  have  with  great  reluc- 
tance been  oblig'd  to  prosecute  for  several  Breaches  of  Trust, 
which  he  appears  to  me  to  have  committed  with  respect 
to  the  Crown,  the  Soldiers,  and  myself,  in  an  Action  at  Law ; 
which  is  now  depending  by  Appeal,  before  the  King  in 
Council.  Before  this  troublesome  Affair,  which  a  just  Re- 
gard for  my  own  Character  forc'd  me  into,  this  Person  on 
whom  I  had  heap'd  all  the  Obligations  in  my  Power,  was 
perfectly  attach'd  to  my  Interest,  and  Nothing  but  a  Dis- 
appointment in  his  exorbitant  Views,  and  forgetfuUness  of 
past  favours  have  instigated  him  to  attempt  to  do  me  any 
ill  Offices. 

As  your  Grace  particularly  inquir'd  of  me,  how  Mr.  Kilby 
came  to  be  turn'd  out  from  being  Agent  to  the  Province 
under  my  Government,  I  proceed  to  give  your  Grace  an 
Account  of  it. 

After  having  miscarry'd  in  his  Election  for  Agent,  upon 
his  own  Interest,  which  in  the  time  of  my  being  sick,  and 
surpriz'd  in  bringing  the  Choice  on,  procur'd  him  but  six 
votes ;  I,  upon  coming  abroad  obtain'd  almost  an  unani- 
mous vote  for  him  of  both  Houses  by  my  Personal  Interest, 
and  afterwards  supported  him  for  several  Years  in  it.  His 
Agency  for  the  Province  procur'd  for  him,  upon  the  Reduc- 
tion of  Cape  Breton,  a  Nomination  to  be  Agent  to  mine  and 
Sir  William  Pepperrell's  Regiment;    to  the  former  of  which 

49S 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

I  immediately  sent  him  my  own  appointment,  and  likewise 
procur'd  Sir  William's  for  him  to  his  Regiment. 

Afterwards  the  Assembly  being  extremely  disgusted  at  his 
conduct  in  his  special  Agency,  wherein  he  was  join'd  with 
Mr.  Bollan  for  solliciting  a  Reimbursement  of  the  Province's 
expences  in  the  Expedition  against  Cape  Breton,  resolv'd  to 
dismiss  him  from  that  particular  Trust,  which  being  appriz'd 
of  by  the  Speaker  but  a  few  hours  before  the  Affair  was  to  be 
mov'd  in  the  House,  and  that  if  I  should  refuse  my  Consent 
to  such  a  Vote,  it  would  bring  one  on  for  a  Dismission  of  him 
from  his  general  Agency,  I  consented  to  it,  chiefly  out  of 
tenderness  to  him.  At  this.  My  Lord,  he  took  Umbrage, 
and  proceeded  to  make  the  most  injurious  Use  of  the  Confi- 
dence, which  as  an  Agent  for  the  Province  of  my  choosing  and 
Agent  to  my  Regiment  was  necessarily  repos'd  in  him,  and 
must  give  him  under  a  feign'd  Concern  for  my  Interest 
greater  Opportunities  of  hurting  me.  He  secretly,  as  I 
have  the  greatest  Reason  to  imagine,  fomented  the  Military 
Complaints  against  me,  procur'd  a  Libel  work'd  up  with  the 
most  exquisite  Malice  to  be  publish'd  in  the  Westminster 
Journal  against  me  on  that  Acct,  transmitted  it  to  Boston,  and 
procur'd  a  most  virulent  scandalous  letter  against  me  to  be 
propagated  among  the  Members  of  the  Assembly  in  order  to 
hurt  me  in  their  Opinion ;  with  other  Attempts  to  make  me 
uneasy  in  my  Government ;  But,  my  Lord,  the  Effect,  which 
these  Proceedings,  together  with  the  part  he  acted  to  the 
Province  in  publickly  opposing  their  immediate  Reimburse- 
ment, and  joining  with  the  Merchants  in  signing  a  Petition 
to  the  Lords  of  the  Treasury  for  that  Purpose ;  in  which  like- 
wise was  insinuated  a  base  Falsehood  against  myself,  directly, 
as  appears  to  me,  against  his  own  Knowledge,  was  to  bring  on 
his  Dismission  from  his  General  Agency  in  a  full  Assembly, 
which  was  pass'd  by  almost  a  general  Vote  in  the  House  of 
Representatives,  and  in  the  Council  nemine  contradicente ; 
which,  my  Lord,  I  hope  Your  Grace  will  not  after  this  account 
of  his  Behaviour,  think  it  was  fit  for  me  to  thwart  the  As- 
sembly in,  by  refusing  my  Consent  to  it. 

I  should  not  have  troubled  your  Grace  with  so  long  a 

496 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

Detail  of  this  Affair,  if  I  had  not  thought  your  Grace  ex- 
press'd  in  your  Inquiry  concerning  it,  an  Apprehension  that 
Mr.  Kilby  had  been  hardly  us'd. 

I  beg  leave,  my  Lord,  to  add  that  I  challenge  any  Person 
to  point  out  any  part  of  my  Administration,  which  I  am  not 
fully  perswaded  I  should  have  the  Honour  to  receive  his 
Majesty's  Approbation  of  upon  an  Inquiry  into  it,  or  of  my 
private  Conduct  since  I  have  been  in  my  Government,  which 
can  affect  my  Honour  or  Character  to  my  Prejudice. 

As  to  the  Military  Complaints,  I  hope  the  Opinion  of  Mr. 
Fox,^  who  made  a  thorough  Inquiry  into  'em,  and  the  Dec- 
laration in  my  favour  which  His  Royal  Highness  the  Duke 
did  me  the  Honour  to  make  upon  looking  into  'em,  may  be 
sufficient  to  clear  me  from  any  Imputation  on  that  Account, 
and  that  upon  the  whole  of  my  Conduct  I  shall  not  appear 
to  Your  Grace  to  have  done  any  thing  to  forfeit  in  the  least 
degree  your  Grace's  good  Opinion  of  me,  or  the  Assurances 
your  Grace  has  given  me  of  his  Majesty's  Royal  favour  on 
Acct  of  my  former  Services.  As  to  my  Execution  of  the 
several  Trusts  in  particular  which  your  Grace  was  pleas'd  by 
two  letters  afterwards  to  commit  to  me  relative  to  the  Pres- 
ervation of  Nova  Scotia,  and  the  Expences  incurr'd  on  Acct 
of  the  Canada  Expedition,  I  beg  leave  to  referr  your  Grace 
to  Mr.  Pelham,  and  hope  your  Grace  will  find  it  such,  as  has 
not  in  the  least  detracted  from  my  former  Services,  but  may, 
I  hope,  rather  increase  my  Pretensions  to  the  Honour  of  your 
Grace's  good  opinion. 

The  great  Desire,  I  have  of  preserving  the  Honour  of  your 
Grace's  Patronage,  which  at  first  introduc'd  me  into  his  Maj- 
esty's Service,  and  my  Ambition  to  acquit  myself  in  it,  so 

^  Henry  Fox  was  Secretary  at  War  from  1746  to  1756.  His 
abilities  are  usually  underrated  by  comparison  with  his  more 
brilliant  son,  Charles  James  Fox,  and  his  service  in  the  government 
was  much  hampered  by  his  opposition  to  the  King  and  his  desire 
for  advance  of  position.  He  was  born  in  1705  and  died  in  1774- 
With  the  exception  of  his  rival  Pitt  he  was,  perhaps,  the  ablest  of 
British  officials  who  became  interested  in  American  affairs  during 
the  period  of  Shirley's  governorship  of  Massachusetts. 
VOL.1  —  2K  497 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

as  to  appear  not  to  have  made  ill  use  of  your  Grace's  favour, 
will,  I  hope,  plead  my  Excuse  to  your  Grace  for  this  Letter 
I  am  with  the  most  gratefull  Sense  of  your  Grace's  favours. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  DutifuU  and  most 
Devoted  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed: 

Janry  23,  1749/ SO- 
Govr  Shirley. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  JOSIAH  WILLARD  ^ 

St.  James's  Street,  Feby.  13,  1749. 
Sir, 

I  have  just  time  to  acknowledge  the  Reciept  of  your 
Packets  by  Spender,  and  inclose  you  a  Copy  of  the  Petition  of 
the  New  Hampshire  Agent  upon  the  Affair  of  Fort  Dummer 
in  which  you  will  find  recited  the  Report  of  the  Board  of  Trade 
upon  our  Petition.  I  have  put  this  into  the  hands  of  Mr. 
John  Sharpe  for  the  SoUicitors  part  and  no  attendance  of  mine 
shall  be  wanting  to  promote  the  Interests  of  the  Province  in 
this  Matter.  I  hope  to  introduce  the  Bill  I  have  prepar'd 
for  putting  an  End  to  the  Paper  Currency  in  the  other  three 
Colonies  of  New  England  into  Parliament  next  week.  All 
other  Points  for  the  Province's  Service  shall  be  likewise  taken 
Care  of  before  my  Departure  for  Paris,  wch  our  Ambassador, 
the  Earl  of  Albemarle  writes  the  Duke  of  Bedford  word  is 
much  press'd  for  by  the  Marquis  Puisyeux  the  French 
Secretary. 

I  have  not  yet  reciev'd  the  Answer  of  the  Lords  of  Treasury 
to  my  Memorial  to  'em  in  favour  of  the  Province's  Demand 
for  billetting  Money,  hire  of  Transports  and  other  Charges  in- 

^  Original,  A.  L.  S.,  Mass.  Arch.,  Col.  Ser.,  54,  2.  Reproduced  in 
illustration  facing  p.  410. 

498 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

curred  on  Acct.  of  the  Canada  Expedition,  a  Copy  of  wch.  I 
inclosed  to  you  in  the  last  Vessell.     I  am  with  much  truth 

your  most  Humble  Servant 

W.  Shirley. 
Honble  Secry  Willard. 

P.S.     You  will  communicate  this  Sir,  I  can  get  a  duplicate 
of  the  report  in  time  to  inclose  it. 


WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

St.  James's  Street,  March  28th,  1750. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

General  Phillips's  Regiment  having  been  lately  given  to 
Col :  Cornwallis,  I  beg  leave  to  submit  the  State  of  my  Case 
to  Your  Grace's  Consideration. 

During  the  late  Warr  with  France,  my  Lord,  the  Protec- 
tion and  care  of  the  Province  of  Nova  Scotia  principally  (if 
not  solely)  lay  upon  me ;  in  the  Course  of  which  I  preserv'd 
it  several  times  from  the  most  imminent  Danger  of  falling 
into  the  Enemy's  hands ;  once  particularly  in  the  Year  1744 
and  twice  in  the  Year  1746,  which  being  Matters  generally 
known,  and  what  I  have  in  former  letters  given  Your  Grace 
particular  Accounts  of,  as  Occasion  requir'd,  I  shall  not 
trouble  Your  Grace  with  a  Repetition  of  'em  here,  nor  of 
the  Variety  of  Incidents,  which  arose  during  my  being  in- 
trusted with  the  Care  of  this  Province,  in  the  whole  Course 
of  which  Lt :  Govr  :  Mascarene  did  Nothing  of  Moment  with- 
out either  my  Directions,  Approbation,  or  Advice,  transmit- 
ting even  his  Correspondence  with  his  Majesty's  Ministers 
thro'  my  hands,  that  I  might  in  my  letters  supply  or  correct 
any  thing  in  his,  which  I  should  think  requir'd  it  and  the 
whole  Period,  my  Lord,  was  fill'd  with  Imbarkations  of  Men 

^  Original,  L.  S.,  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32720,  166.  A 
transcript  is  in  the  Library  of  Congress. 

499 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

for  the  Succour  of  the  Garrison  and  Protection  of  the  Prov- 
ince, the  troublesome  Detail  of  which,  in  it's  greatest  Extent 
of  raising  the  men,  transporting,  victualling,  cloathing, 
paying  'em,  etc.  rested  wholly  upon  me ;  so  that  I  believe 
I  may  say,  no  one  of  his  Majesty's  American  Governours 
ever  had  a  more  complicated,  difficult  and  important  Trust, 
than  I  had  in  the  care  of  this  Province  for  five  Years,  at  a 
time  when  the  Weight  of  my  own  Government  was  no  light 
one :  and  what  my  Vigilance  and  Success  have  been  in  the 
execution  of  it,  there  is  none  so  fit  to  judge  as  Your  Grace, 
nor  one  to  whom  I  should  so  soon  wish  to  referr  it. 

In  the  Course  of  these  Services,  my  Lord,  I  receiv'd  an 
Address  of  Thanks  in  1744  from  the  Lieut.  Governour  and 
Council  of  Nova  Scotia,  acknowledging  that  the  Measures 
taken  by  me  had  sav'd  the  Province  from  falling  into  the 
Enemy's  hands  that  Year;  and  soon  after  I  had  the  Honour 
to  receive  a  Copy  of  his  Majesty's  Royal  Approbation  of 
what  I  had  done,  declar'd  in  Council,  together  with  a  letter 
from  Your  Grace,  assuring  me,  that  if  I  continu'd  my  Vigil- 
ance in  the  Publick  Service,  it  would  effectually  recommend 
me  to  his  Majesty's  favour. 

Accordingly,  my  Lord,  upon  the  Reduction  of  Cape  Breton 
I  receiv'd,  thro'  Your  Grace's  Goodness  to  me,  a  Mark  of  his 
Majesty's  favour  in  the  Command  of  my  late  Regiment,  with 
a  Declaration  of  Your  Graces  good  Disposition  to  obtain 
farther  Marks  of  it  for  me ;  and  upon  my  Desire  that  Your 
Grace  would  recommend  me  for  the  Command  of  Phillips's 
Regiment,  when  it  should  be  vacant.  Your  Grace  was  pleas'd 
in  Your  letter  of  the  9th.  of  April  1746,  which  signified 
his  Majesty's  Commands  to  me  for  an  Expedition  against 
Canada,  to  assure  me  that  you  would  do  it.  In  a  subsequent 
letter,  which  I  had  the  Honour  to  receive  from  Your  Grace 
dated  the  3d.  of  October  1747,^  Your  Grace  was  pleas'd  to  give 
me  a  repeated  Assurance  that  his  Majesty  design'd  to  bestow 
on  me  the  Government  of  Nova  Scotia,  to  hold  with  that 
of  the  Massachusetts  Bay ;  and  Sir  Peter  Warren,  soon  after 

^  Ante,  pp.  320,  note,  and  401. 
500 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

his  Arrival  in  England,  inform'd  me  in  a  letter  that  he  had 
Your  Grace's  Commands  to  acquaint  me  in  Your  Grace's 
Name  (Your  Grace  not  then  having  time  to  write  Yourself) 
that  the  King  would  not  hear  of  General  Phillips's  being  re- 
mov'd  either  from  his  government  or  regiment,  but  that  upon 
their  becoming  vacant,  I  might  depend  upon  having  both  of 
'em. 

What,  my  Lord,  the  Consequences  of  the  Services,  upon 
which  the  beforemention'd  Assurances  of  his  Majesty's 
favour  to  me  were  founded,  have  been  to  the  Nation,  how 
far  they  may  have  contributed  towards  procuring  the  general 
Tranquility  which  is  establish'd  by  the  Treaty  of  Aix  la  Cha- 
pelle,  and  what  would  probably  have  been  the  Difference 
between  the  present  State  of  his  Majesty's  Service,  and  that 
which  it  might  have  been  in,  if  instead  of  saving  Nova  Scotia 
from  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  French,  and  making  the 
Acquisition  of  Cape  Breton,  the  French  had  kept  Possession 
of  the  latter  during  the  Warr,  and  his  Majesty  had  lost  the 
former  to  'em  (which  must  have  been  the  case  if  those  Serv- 
ices had  not  been  effected),  I  will  not  presume  to  say  to  Your 
Grace,  who  are  the  most  perfect  Judge  of  that. 

But,  I  beg  leave,  my  Lord,  to  express  to  Your  Grace  the 
Concern,  I  am  under  upon  finding  myself  at  present  disap- 
pointed of  those  Marks  of  his  Majesty's  favour,  which  I  had 
Assurances  given  me  of  receiving  as  the  Reward  of  my  Serv- 
ices, and  not  supported  herein  by  Your  Grace,  (whose 
Patronage,  next  to  his  ajesty's  favour,  I  ever  esteem'd  my 
highest  Honour)  tho'  I  am  not  conscious  of  having  done  any 
thing  which  should  in  any  degree  cancell  my  services,  or 
forfeit  my  Title  to  the  continuance  of  Your  Grace's  Good- 
ness to  me ;  but  had  Reason  to  think  I  had  given  such  Proofs 
of  my  Zeal,  and  Fidelity  in  other  parts  of  his  Majesty's  Serv- 
ice, as  might  have  increas'd  my  hopes  of  his  Royal  favour ; 
concerning  which  I  may  say,  my  Lord,  in  general,  that  not- 
withstanding the  late  intended  Expedition  against  Canada  did 
not  proceed,  yet  the  Services  in  which  I  employ'd  part  of  the 
Troops  rais'd  in  my  own  Government,  whilst  the  Expedition 
was  kept  on  foot,  did  in  it's  Consequences  prevent  a  much 

SOI 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

larger  Increase  of  the  National  Debt,  than  the  Sum,  which  the 
expences  incurr'd  on  Acct  of  that  Expedition  in  all  the  Prov- 
inces, amount  to,  as  I  can  make  appear,  if  there  should  be 
occasion  for  it ;  and  that  I  have  executed  the  Trusts,  which 
Your  Grace  was  pleas'd  to  commit  to  me  of  settling  the  Al- 
lowance of  the  Troops,  disbanding  'em,  adjusting  and  liqui- 
dating the  Accompts  of  the  whole  Expence  of  the  Expedition, 
with  great  Fidelity  and  Oeconomy  for  the  Crown,  have  acted 
in  it  with  the  strictest  Justice  to  the  Soldiers  rais'd  in  my 
own  Government  and  in  the  most  disinterested  Manner 
with  Regard  to  myself :  And  for  the  Difficulties,  which 
must  have  attended  the  Execution  of  these  Trusts,  the 
length  of  time,  and  Closeness  of  Attention,  it  has  requir'd, 
and  what  very  large  Sums  I  have  sav'd  the  Publick  in  liqui- 
dating the  Accompts,  and  by  preventing  the  Crown  from  going 
on  to  make  Payments  in  it's  own  Wrong  I  would  appeal  to 
the  Lords  of  Trade,  his  Majesty's  Paymaster  General  and 
Secretary  at  Warr  to  whom  these  Accts  have  been  referr'd. 
And  I  shall  only  beg  leave,  my  Lord,  to  add  upon  this 
head,  that  in  pursuance  of  Your  Grace's  Directions  in  your 
last  letter  to  me,  I  concerted  Measures  with  Govr.  Clinton  for 
retaining  the  Indians  of  the  five  Nations  in  his  Majesty's 
Alliance,  and  assisted  at  the  Interview  with  'em  at  Albany 
for  that  Purpose,  and  have  pursuant  to  Your  Grace's  Direc- 
tions transmitted  Plans  of  a  Civil  Government  and  Settle- 
ment of  Nova  Scotia,^  as  likewise  for  fortifying  it,  which  I 
believe  upon  a  little  more  Experience  in  carrying  on  the 
settlements  there  will  be  found  not  ill  calculated  for  his 
Majesty s  Service.  And  for  an  Instance  of  my  Persever- 
ance in  discharging  my  Trust  for  the  Protection  of  the  Prov- 
ince of  Nova  Scotia  since  I  had  Advice  that  Mr.  Cornwallis 
was  appointed  Governour  of  it,  I  beg  leave  to  acquaint  Your 
Grace,  that  upon  receiving  Intelligence  from  Mr.  Mascarene 
of  the  first  Party  of  French  Soldiers  Arrival  with  warlike 
stores  from  Canada  in  the  River  St.  John's,  I  sent  a  20  Gun 
ship  to  assist  in  removing  'em  forthwith  out  of  the  Province. 

^  For  the  interview  with  the  Indians  see  ante,  p.  429 ;  and  for 
Shirley's  Plans  for  the  Government  of  Nova  Scotia  see  ante^  p.  472. 

502 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

It  is  now  time  for  me  to  mention  to  Your  Grace  the  End, 
I  propose  in  troubling  Your  Grace  with  this  letter.  It  is, 
my  Lord,  to  intreat  Your  Grace,  that  I  may  not  be  wholly 
disappointed  of  the  farther  Marks  of  his  Majesty's  favour  I 
had  receiv'd  Assurances  of ;  but  that,  as  I  understand  from 
gentlemen,  whose  Information  I  think  may  authorize  me  to 
mention  it  to  Your  Grace,  that  Mr.  Cornwallis  went  to  Nova 
Scotia  with  an  Assurance  of  his  returning  home  in  two  Years, 
I  may  upon  his  leaving  the  Province,  if  that  should  be  the 
case  within  the  time  beforemention'd,  have  the  Promise  I 
had  the  Honour  to  receive  of  holding  that  Government  with 
that  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay  made  good  to  me ;  and  upon 
the  Vacancy  of  the  first  Regiment,  which  may  make  room  for 
his  having  the  Command  of  it,  I  may  succeed  him  in  the 
command  of  Phillips's,  which  I  likewise  had  an  Assurance 
of,  before  he  was  appointed  to  it.  The  present  Assurances 
of  this,  my  Lord,  would  remove  the  Imputation  cast  upon 
my  Services  by  my  late  Disappointment,  which  I  hope  Your 
Grace  is  convinc'd  now,  there  is  no  just  Grounds  to  think 
I  have  the  least  merited  to  lye  under  :  or  if  Your  Grace  shall 
rather  approve  of  some  other  Equivalent  for  what  was  de- 
sign'd  me,  that  I  may  obtain  it  thro'  Your  Grace's  Goodness. 

I  am  sensible,  my  Lord,  I  have  lately  been  honour'd 
with  a  Mark  of  his  Majesty's  Royal  Confidence  in  me, 
as  one  of  his  Commissaries  for  settling  the  limits  of  his  Ter- 
ritories in  America,  etc.,  and  as  such  I  accepted  the  Appoint- 
ment ;  But  I  beg  leave  to  assure  Your  Grace  that  other 
motives  of  my  Acceptance  were,  my  hopes  that  it  might 
give  me  an  easier  Access  to  his  Majesty's  Ministers  to  lay 
before  'em  the  State  of  Nova  Scotia;  which  from  having 
been  long  the  Object  of  my  Attention  appears  to  me  im- 
mediately to  affect  the  Safety  of  all  his  other  Northern  Colo- 
nies, particularly  those  of  New  England,  and  in  it's  Conse- 
quences the  Interests  of  Great  Britain  itself  in  a  very  high 
degree;  and  that  from  my  Acquaintance  with  the  points 
relative  to  the  Dispute  between  his  Majesty's  Subjects  and 
the  French  concerning  the  limits  of  his  Territories  in  North 
America,  I  might  be  more  capable  of  doing  his  Majesty  Serv- 

503 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ice  in  this  Negotiation  than  some  other  Gentleman,  who 
perhaps  might  not  have  had  the  Opportunity  of  seeing  'em 
in  so  strong  a  light  as  myself,  and  consequently  not  be  sup- 
pos'd  to  have  'em  so  much  at  heart;  But,  my  Lord,  with 
respect  to  the  Negotiation  itself  abstracted  from  these  Con- 
siderations, I  foresee  from  the  present  Situation  of  Affairs  in 
Nova  Scotia,  it  will  be  attended  with  great  Difficulties ;  and 
as  to  the  Profits  of  it,  if  I  am  rightly  inform'd  of  the  necessary 
expences  of  a  private  Gentleman  in  Paris,  the  Allowance  to 
me  as  Commissary  will  be  no  more  than  a  bare  Support  for 
myself  there ;  and  as  to  my  Family,  Nothing  will  be  coming 
in  to  them  from  my  Government  during  my  Absence,  the 
salary  there  being  voted  annually ;  so  that  I  hope  Your  Grace 
will  not  look  upon  this  Appointment  as  any  Recompence 
for  my  past  Services. 

It  only  remains  for  me  to  add,  my  Lord,  that  as  I  owe  the 
Honour  of  being  first  employ'd  in  his  Majesty's  Service  to 
Your  Grace's  Goodness,  and  have  from  time  to  time  receiv'd 
all  the  Trusts,  which  have  been  committed  to  me  in  it,  from 
Your  Grace's  hands ;  and  the  Publick  Services,  I  have  been 
engag'd  in  have  been  carry'd  on  under  the  Influence  of  Your 
Grace's  Administration  ;  which  will,  I  doubt  not,  be  honour'd 
by  all  his  Majesty's  Subjects  in  North  America,  whilst  the 
Memory  of  the  Benefits  they  have  receiv'd  from  it  con- 
tinues ;  I  hope  Your  Grace  will  not  disapprove  of  the  De- 
sire I  have  of  obtaining  the  farther  Marks  of  Your  Grace's 
favour  and  Protection,  which  I  have  taken  the  Liberty  to 
mention ;  and  pardon  the  Trouble,  this  long  letter  has  oc- 
casion'd  to  Your  Grace. 

I  am  with  the  most  gratefuU  Sense  of  all  my  Obligation  to 

Your  Grace,  >  *^    t      j  t\   i 

'  My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Dutifull  and  most 

Devoted  Servant, 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle.  ^'  Shirley. 

Endorsed: 

March  28,  1750. 
Govr.  Shirley. 

S04 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE  ^ 

St.  James's  Street,  April  lo,  1750. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace  having  done  me  the  Honour,  to  tell  me  at 
your  Levee  that  you  would  peruse  my  Letter  more  thoroughly 
than  you  had,  I  beg  leave  to  trouble  you  at  the  same  time 
with  these  Additional  Lines,  to  request  your  Grace,  that  as 
I  find,  since  writing  my  last,  Mr.  Cornwallis's  Return  to 
England  will  probably  be  more  distant  than  I  imagin'd,  you 
would  be  pleas'd  to  recommend  me  to  Mr.  Pelham  for  an 
Allowance  out  of  his  Majesty's  Treasury  equal  to  what  my 
late  Regiment  yielded  me,  which  I  compute  here  at  £1000 
Sterling  pr  Anfi ;  'till  I  am  favour'd  with  the  Government 
of  Nova  Scotia,  and  the  Command  of  the  Regiment  late 
Phillips's  ;  or  'till  your  Grace  shall  be  pleas'd  to  dispose  of 
me  in  any  other  part  of  his  Majesty's  Service  where  an  Open- 
ing for  it  may  offer,  which  may  yield  me  an  adequate  Support. 

This  request,  my  Lord,  I  hope  will  not  appear  unreason- 
able, if  your  Grace  will  be  pleas'd  to  consider  that  my  Regi- 
ment, which,  thro'  your  Grace's  goodness  to  me,  I  obtain'd 
for  my  Services  in  the  Expedition  against  Cape  Breton,  is 
reduc'd,  for  which  I  am  not  intitled  to  Half  Pay;  that,  as 
I  observ'd  in  my  former  Letter,  my  Government  yields  me 
no  profit  during  my  Absence  from  it,  and  my  Allowance  as 
Commissary  is  barely  sufficient  to  maintain  me  during  my 
negotiation  at  Paris ;  which,  under  the  present  embarrass'd 
circumstances  of  Nova  Scotia,  seems  likely  to  take  up  no 
short  time ;  So  that  I  find  myself  in  his  Majesty's  Service 
without  the  least  Support  arising  from  it  for  my  Family, 
and  in  a  worse  Situation  than  I  was  in  before  I  enter'd  upon 
those  parts  of  it,  for  which  I  had  lately  the  Honour  to  have 
some  recompence  design'd  and  promis'd  me. 

I  hope,  my  Lord,  this  temporary  Allowance  to  me  out  of 

^  Original,  L.  S.,  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32720^  199.  A 
transcript  is  in  the  Library  of  Congress. 

SOS 


CORRESPONDENCE^  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

the  Treasury,  for  the  Subsistence  of  my  Family,  will  be 
thought  the  more  reasonable,  as  I  have  so  lately  sav'd  the 
publick  near  £60,000  in  the  Adjustment  and  Liquidation  of 
the  Accompts  of  all  the  Colonies  concern'd  in  the  late  in- 
tended Expedition  against  Canada,  and  the  presentation  of 
the  Barrier  of  all  his  Majesty's  Colonies  in  North  America 
from  falling  into  the  Enemy's  Hands,  with  the  late  Acquisi- 
tion of  Cape  Breton,  are  principally  owing  to  my  Services. 
Which  events,  how  far  they  have  contributed  towards  pro- 
curing the  present  Tranquillity  of  the  Nation,  and  thereby 
preventing  a  farther  large  National  Expence,  I  would  wholly 
Submit  to  your  Grace  and  Mr.  Pelham. 

I  would  therefore  earnestly  intreat  your  Grace  to  rec- 
ommend me  to  Mr.  Pelham  for  the  Allowance  I  have  men- 
tion'd,  that  I  may  not,  whilst  I  am  engag'd  in  a  difficult  part 
of  his  Majesty's  Service,  have  the  Concern  to  reflect  that  I 
have  no  Support  coming  in  for  my  Family ;  which  without 
some  present  Allowance  to  me  must  be  the  Case ;  And  that 
your  Grace  would  permit  me  to  have  the  Honour  of  a  few 
Minutes  private  Audience  with  you,  as  soon  as  it  will  suit 
your  Grace's  Conveniency. 

1  am  with  the  most  dutiful  Regard, 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Oblig'd, 
and  most  Devoted  Servant, 

His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed: 

April  10,  1750. 
Govr.  Shirley. 

JOSIAH  WILLARD  TO  SPENCER  PHIPS^ 

o  Boston,  April,  1750. 

I  have  received  two  letters  from  your  Excy.  dated  the  i6th 
and  26th  of  October  last.     In  the  first  you  are  pleased  to 

^  Original,  Mass.  Arch.,  Col.  Ser.,  53,  557.  This  letter  is  en- 
dorsed   as    to    Governor  Shirley,  but  it  more  probably  came    to 

506 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

propose  my  supplying  you  with  a  number  of  Dollars  out  of 
the  publick  money  sent  hither  from  Gt  Britain  to  reimburse 
this  Province  for  their  charge  in  reducing  Cape  Breton,  and  for 
my  taking  your  Bills  in  Exchange  for  it.  I  should  have  been 
glad  if  it  were  in  my  power  to  assist  your  Excy.  in  any  proper 
way  under  your  difficulties  but  the  state  of  the  case  (of 
which  I  suppose  you  are  not  acquainted)  is  this  :  By  Act  of 
the  Assembly  this  money  was  directed  into  the  Hands  of 
the  Provincial  Treasurer,  and  was  accordingly  consigned  to 
him  from  Great  Britain,  and  it  was  apprehended  by  the 
Council  to  be  so  entirely  under  his  Care  and  Custody  till  the 
General  Court  should  give  further  Orders  about  it  that  they 
did  not  think  it  proper  to  direct  it  to  be  lodged  in  any  other 
Place  than  the  Treasurer's  house  tho  they  judged  that  not 
to  be  the  Safest  Place. 

The  matter  being  thus  circumstanced  Your  Excellency  will 
excuse  me  that  I  did  not  think  it  proper  for  me  to  interpose 
in  this  affair,  but  I  am  glad  to  understand  that  your  Excy.  is 
otherwise  well  supplied.  As  to  the  two  Frenchmen  mentioned 
in  your  other  letter  after  their  examination  before  me  and  the 
Council,  they  profess'd  themselves  to  be  Protestants  and  that 
their  design  was  to  settle  in  this  Province  and  that  they  were 
ready  to  take  the  Oaths  of  Fidelity  to  his  Majesty ;  and  there- 
upon I  got  the  French  minister  in  this  town  to  examine  them 
touching  their  religion  which  he  has  done  and  has  returned  a 
certificate  that  he  verily  believes  them  to  be  true  Protestants. 

The  treaty  between  commissioners  for  this  government  and 
the  Eastern  Indians  is  now  concluded,  wherein  they  have 
made  their  submission  to  his  Majesty  as  in  former  Treaties 
and  I  herewith  inclose  three  printed  copies  of  the  Treaty  to 
your  Excy.  The  officer  sent  by  Governor  Shirley  to  Canada 
to  demand  the  English  Captives  is  not  yet  returned  so  that 
I  cant  expect  him  till  the  Lakes  be  so  frozen  as  to  make  it 
safe  passing  on  the  Ice.  When  he  shall  return  or  any  ad- 
vices shall  arrive  referring  to  the  effect  of  his  negotiation  I 
shall  inform  your  Excy.  thereof. 

Lieutenant  Governor  Phips  acting  in  Shirley's  place  during  the 
latter's  absence  in  Europe. 

507 


CORRESPONDENCE  OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

WILLIAM   SHIRLEY  TO  THE   DUKE   OF 
NEWCASTLE ' 

Paris,  Septr.  i.  N.  S.  1750. 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Together  with  the  publick  Letter  now  transmitted  to  your 
Grace  upon  his  Majesty's  service,  I  take  the  liberty  of 
troubling  your  Grace  with  a  short  one  upon  my  own  affairs. 

Before  I  left  England  the  Lords  Commissioners  for  Trade 
etc.  had  made  a  report  to  the  Lords  of  Council  upon  the 
present  state  of  his  Majesty's  government  of  the  New  Jerseys 
in  America,  whereby  their  Lordships  propose  putting  that 
Government  under  the  Administration  of  the  Governour  of 
New  York  for  the  time  being. 

Upon  this  Occasion,  my  Lord,  in  case  the  Junction  should 
not  be  made  under  Mr.  Clinton,  who,  I  am  credibly  inform'd 
by  his  friends,  has  a  prospect  of  returning  to  England  more 
to  his  Advantage,  I  would  beg  the  favour  of  your  Grace  to 
honour  me  with  your  recommendation  to  his  Majesty  for 
that  Trust. 

As  I  understood  the  consideration  of  this  Report  was  soon 
to  be  brought  on,  and  your  Grace's  Absence  depriv'd  me  of 
an  Opportunity  of  making  this  Application  to  you  before  I 
left  England,  Upon  my  taking  leave  of  his  Grace  the  Duke 
of  Bedford  I  mention'd  my  request  to  him,  who  receiv'd  it 
so  favourably,  that  I  am  not  without  hopes  of  his  Grace's 
being  extremely  well  dispos'd  to  promote  it ;  which  I  thought 
it  would  not  be  improper  for  me  to  apprize  your  Grace  of. 

Tho'  I  have  mention'd  the  propos'd  Junction  of  the  two 
governments  to  your  Grace,  yet  I  beg  leave  to  add,  that  that 
Circumstance ;  which  in  the  present  State  of  both  of  'em, 
will  render  the  service  more  Difficult  to  the  Gentleman  who 
shall  have  the  honour  to  be  appointed  Governour,  is  no 
Inducement  to  me  to  desire  the  Trust ;  For  if  the  proposal 
of  the  Lords  of  Trade  should  not  take  place,  and  the  Gov- 

^  Original,  B.  M.,  Additional  Manuscript  32^22,  212.  A  tran- 
script is  in  the  Library  of  Congress. 

508 


CORRESPONDENCE   OF  WILLIAM  SHIRLEY 

ernment  of  New  York  should  become  vacant  by  Mr.  Clinton's 
quitting  it,  I  should  in  such  case  be  equally  oblig'd  to  your 
Grace  for  the  recommendation  of  me  to  succeed  him  in  New- 
York,  tho'  a  Distinct  Governour  should  be  appointed  for  the 
Jerseys. 

I  am  with  a  most  gratefull  sense  of  all  your  Grace's  favours, 
My  Lord  Duke, 

Your  Grace's  most  Oblig'd, 
and  most  DutifuU  Servant, 

W.  Shirley. 
His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Newcastle. 

Endorsed  : 

Paris.  Septr.  ist.  N.  S.  1750. 
Mr.  Shirley. 


509 


npHE  following  pages  contain  advertisements  of  a 
few  of  the  Macmillan  books  on  kindred  subjects 


Correspondence  of  William  Pitt 

When    Secretary   of    State   with  Colonial   Governors    and 
Military  and   Naval  Commissioners  in  America 

Edited   under  the  auspices  of  The  National  yociety  of  the  Colonial  Dames  of 
America. 

By    GERTRUDE    SELWYN    PIIMBALL 

Two  Volumes.     Cloth,  iUuslrated,  8vo,  $6.00  net;  postage  extra 

"This  collection  presents  in  chronological  order  all  that  is  of  historical  impor- 
tance in  the  correspondence  of  Pitt  with  the  colonial  governors  and  naval  and  mili- 
tary commanders,  on  the  continent  of  North  America  and  in  the  West  Indies,  during 
those  years  in  which  he  held  the  position  of  secretary  of  state.  It  is  a  valuable  work 
on  the  colonial  period  of  our  history.  The  documents  have  been  copied  from  the 
originals  in  the  Public  Record  Office  in  London,"  —  Critic. 

The  Letters  of  Richard  Henry  Lee 

Collected  and  Edited  by  JAMES  CURTIS  BALLAGH,  Ph.D.,  LL.D.,  Associate 
Professor  of  American  History  in  the  Johns  Hopkins  University. 

Vol.  I.     Cloth,  8vo,  467  pp.,  $2.50  net;  by  fnail,  %2.6g 

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The  volume  is  full  of  first-hand  information,  and  provides  not  only  interesting  read- 
ing, but  throws  new  light  upon  the  most  critical  period  of  our  history."  —  Brooklyn 
Citizen. 

"  It  contains  about  five  hundred  letters  written  by  Richard  Henry  Lee  to  various 
persons,  all  of  them  reliable  texts,  taken  from  original  manuscripts  or  transcripts, 
many  of  them  of  great  public  and  historical  importance,  much  of  it  preserved  by  his 
correspondents,  scattered  widely  here  or-  there.  Lee's  distinguished  public  services, 
patriotically  given  to  the  founding  and  development  of  the  American  Republic, 
together  with  the  wisdom  and  loyalty  which  characterized  these  services,  render 
these  'Letters'  very  valuable.  Tliey  constitute  a  contribution  of  rare  value  to  the 
historical  and  colonial  literature  of  the  country." —  Telescope. 

"A  welcome  and  valuable  addition  to  the  documentary  history  of  the  Revo- 
lution."—  New  York  Sn7i. 

"The  letters  will  be  welcomed  for  their  historical  as  well  as  intrinsic  value  for 
biographical  purposes."  —  Boston  Herald. 

"An  important  contribution  to  historical  literature  and  should  prove  deeply 
interesting  to  the  student  and  entertaining  to  any  reader."  —  Baltimore  Evening  Sun. 


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Cavour.     By  Countess  Caesaresco. 
Charles  the  Great.     By  T.  Hodgkin. 
Cosimo  de  Medici.     By  K.  D.  Ewart. 
Joseph  II.     By  J.  F.  Bright. 
Maria  Theresa.     By  J.  F.  Bright, 
Mazarin.     By  A.  Hassall. 


Mirabeau.     By  P.  F.  Willert. 
Philip  II.     By  M.  A.  S.  Hume. 
Philip  Augustus.     By  R.  H.  Hutton. 
Richelieu.     By  R.  Lodge. 
William    the    Silent.     By  F.   Harri- 
son. 


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A  SELECTED  LIST  OF  BIOGRAPHIES  AND  AUTOBIOGRAPHIES 


ACTON,   (Lord)  J.   E.   E. 

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ALLINGHAM,    WILLIAM 

A  Diary 

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ARBLAY,    MADAME    D' 

Diary,  Life,  and  Letters  of  Madame  d*Arblay 

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BISMARCK 

Some  Secret  Pages  of  His  History 

By  M.  Busch 

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CHURCHILL,    LORD    RANDOLPH 

Life  of  Lord  Randolph  Churchill  1 

By  W.  Spencer  Churchill 

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DUMAS,    ALEXANDRE 

'     My  Memoirs 

Translated  by  E.  M.  Waller 

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ELLSWORTH,    OLIVER 

The  Life  of  Oliver  Ellsworth 

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EVELYN,  JOHN 

Diary  and  Correspondence  of  John  Evelyn 

Edited  by  Austin  Dobson 

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FRANKLIN,   BENJAMIN 

Life  and  Writings  of  Benjamin  Franklin 

Edited  by  A.  H.  Smyth 

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GLADSTONE,  W.  E. 

The  Life  of  W.  E.  Gladstone 

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HAYNE,   ROBERT  Y. 

Robert  Y.  Hayne  and  His  Times 

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HOHENLOHE-SCHILLINGSFUERST,   PRINCE  OF 

The  Memoirs  of  Prince  Chlodwig  of  Hohenlohe 

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IRVING,  SIR  HENRY 

Personal  Reminiscences  of  Sir  Henry  Irving 

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LINCOLN,  ABRAHAM 

Abraham  Lincoln :  The  Man  of  the  People 

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Abraham  Lincoln  :  The  Boy  and  the  Man 

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O'BRIEN,    WILLIAM 

Recollections 

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RIIS,   JACOB    A. 

The  Making  of  an  American 

An  Autobiography 

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ROOSEVELT,    THEODORE 

Theodore  Roosevelt :  The  Boy  and  the  Man 

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SHAKESPEARE,    WILLIAM 

Life  of  William  Shakespeare 

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Shakespeare  :  Poet,  Dramatist,  and  Man 

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WESLEY,   JOHN 

The  Life  of  John  Wesley 

By  Caleb  T.  Winchester 

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WOLFF,   (Sir)   HENRY  D. 

Rambling  Recollections 

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